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The City of Regina is looking to use COVID-19 funding to improve safety on public transit.
In November, the city applied for funding under the COVID-19 Resilience Infrastructure Stream.
The city’s executive committee is debating Wednesday to spend a total of $2.5 million on upgrades to city buses. They include installing a permanent bus driver shield and self-securement mobility stations.
Funding for these two projects would be split three ways. The federal government would cover 40 per cent, the province would fund 33 per cent and the city would cover the remaining $686,505.
The goal is to increase physical distancing between bus drivers and passengers while also limiting interactions.
The report to executive committee said during the pandemic, driver vinyl barriers were installed to help reduce the spread of COVID-19. However, they are considered temporary and do not protect drivers from physical interactions.
“It’s almost like a shower curtain,” said Kevin Lucier, president of Amalgamated Transit Union Local 588. “There’s no security features with that. It’s just simply a biohazard kind of shield.”
The proposed driver shields would give drivers a solid barrier to help reduce the risk of physical assaults and would be a standard addition on any future buses.
Lucier said it’s unfortunate, but a lot of drivers come to work scared.
“They’re fearful for their safety. We just don’t know how the passengers are going to react to any certain situations. (Drivers) are definitely looking forward to the day that these things get installed,” said Lucier.
The report found there is a growing number of violent incidents toward bus operators in Canada. It said while physical assaults have been rare in Regina, there have been four in the past two years on Regina Transit.
However, Lucier said his members have seen a bit of an uptick during the pandemic, pointing to four physical assaults since last March. The latest happened last week, leaving the driver injured.
Lucier explained most of the assaults stem from a fare dispute.
The proposed self-securement mobility stations are another way to limit interactions with drivers.
While all city buses have mobility stations, the traditional stations require the bus driver to help passengers with mobility devices by physically strapping them in and doesn’t promote physical distancing.
Lucier said the self-securement stations allow greater independence for those using them and allow drivers to keep their distance.
City council would need to give the final approval to these safety upgrades before moving forward.
