Violence against London's bus drivers has doubled in 5 years, new numbers show

Violent incidents against London Transit bus drivers have doubled in the last five years, numbers obtained by CBC News show. 

Last year, the total number of workplace violence incidents reported by drivers was 55, about one a week. In 2017, there were 25 violent workplace incidents reported, shown in the numbers obtained from the London Transit Commission through a freedom of information request. 

"It's certainly concerning that things are trending upwards, and it's something that we continue to monitor," said Kelly Paleczny, the head of London Transit. 

"I think in general, people's fuses seem to be much shorter. There's not much patience." 

Numbers released to CBC break down the incidents into three categories, from threats of physical violence, an attempt to exercise physical violence, and actual physical violence. The most common category is threats, though actual violence is the second-most common category. 

"People are very belligerent toward the drivers. It's becoming more and more rampant out there. We are dealing with a lot of mental health issues as well," said Michael Gauthier, the president of Amalgamated Transit Union local 741, which represents London Transit operators. 

"The drivers definitely say it's scary." 

The union fought for close to a decade to get plexiglass barriers installed between drivers and passengers, a move that was finally approved because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Gauthier said. The barriers cost about $1.5 million and give drivers an increased sense of safety, he said. 

"They've been very well received by the operators," said Gauthier. 

Fare disputes, short fuses

Drivers are told to remain in their seats and radio dispatch if they need help, as opposed to leaving their seat and opening themselves up to possible physical violence, Paleczny said. 

"A significant number of incidents start with a fare dispute," she said. "We've been educating our operators that they can remind the passenger that the expectation is that you have to pay a fare, but if you don't have it today, that's fine, take a ride and get us back next time."

Drivers need more training on de-escalating situations, Gauthier said, and possibly barriers that completely seal them off from passengers. 

People get angry when they get on the wrong bus or miss their stop and want to immediately get off, he said

."It can be anything. It's difficult to pinpoint what triggers people.They're screaming and yelling at the driver, and the driver determines where it's safe to let them off but they want to be let off somewhere else, they escalate to where they'll start uttering threats, start spitting on the driver, trying to spit through the barrier, smashing the barrier, trying to go around the barrier at the operators." 

Drivers who are not white often face racist slurs when people get mad, Gauthier said. "You hear the growing trends in different cities, attacks happening on the buses with the riding public or against operators, and it's quite concerning." 

Although the numbers indicate a doubling of violent incidents in the last five years, many incidents go unreported, he added. 

"I want to tell the riding public, if you're upset, you know what, life happens. It's not personal. It's not intentional. Remember that the person driving that bus has got a responsibility to get you from Point A to Point B safely. Please, try to respect the driver," he said. 

"You might be having a bad day, our driver may be having a bad day, but in the end, we're all human."