CTA mulls safety shields for bus drivers

Jon Hilkevitch:

Crime on the CTA system grabs headlines and the attention of bloggers when passengers are robbed or assaulted, but CTA employees also are the target of thugs.

About 10 offenses occur each month in which bus drivers are the victims, according to CTA union officials.

As a result, the CTA has been conducting an experiment with the union to better protect bus drivers from possible attacks. One idea that emerged from the transit agency's bus-driver assault subcommittee was to install clear, shatter-proof safety shields that swing into position to cover the driver compartment.

About 500 of the CTA's roughly 2,000 buses are equipped with the plastic shields made of Lexan, officials said. A decision is pending on whether to outfit all buses with the devices, which cost about $800 each to buy and install, officials said. So far, about $400,000 has been spent on the pilot project.

"When the shield is available, I do use it," said Erika Martin, 35, a 12-year CTA veteran who drives the No. 70 Division Street route. "But the regular passengers I have do feel it's a block between open communications."

As a rider I generally know what I'm doing so I may not have to talk to the driver often enough. I want bus drivers to be safe because there are those out there who will harm a bus driver or think it's funny to throw a snowball at a bus driver (something I've witnessed once while riding past Harlan on a bus one winter day many years ago!). Eggs were mentioned, but I heard of an instance where a bus driver was "assaulted" by a fire extinguisher. Anyway here's more

CTA policy dictates that when shields are available, bus drivers must use them. That hasn't been taken well by some drivers. An upcoming rule change will make use of the shields optional, said CTA spokeswoman Noelle Gaffney.

It's hard to argue with the fact that if shields were in place on all buses, recent incidents that could have been stopped include bricks and eggs being thrown through the front door at drivers and unruly riders punching, kicking or pepper-spraying bus operators, according to proponents of the shields.

"Just the other day, a lady hit an operator while he was driving, which could have caused a serious accident," said Carlos J. Acevedo, assistant business agent of maintenance with the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 241.

 Well other than the incidents there are concerns regarding the use of these shields:

But the safety shields are controversial. Acevedo estimated up to 80 percent of drivers don't like the shields or want to see them improved. Among the complaints are that the shields interfere with air circulation and create glare that interferes with the drivers using mirrors. Some beefy drivers also say the shields make the operator quarters too tight. Other drivers are worried the shields would pin them in during a collision.

Acevedo said CTA managers are backing the shield because "they figure it will cut down on worker's compensation claims."

"The union would rather see the CTA have its own police force," Acevedo said, to replace the mass-transit unit of the Chicago Police Department.

The CTA's new boss said he is concerned the shields may foster a mistaken public impression of crime being rampant on the CTA, when in fact it occurs at a lower rate than across Chicago overall.

CTA president Richard Rodriguez said that although the bus-driver shields serve a function, he thinks they also form an unwanted barrier between bus operators and their customers.

"We want customers to feel welcome as well as safe when they ride our system," said Rodriguez, who plans to conduct rider surveys to get feedback before deciding the future of the program.

What do you think about CTA bus drivers having these shields for their protection?

Via CapFax morning shorts!