Bus confrontation leaves passengers terrified By: Erik Pindera Posted: 7:00 PM CST Friday, Feb. 25, 2022

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This article was published 24/02/2022 (938 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A man wielding a hammer and a box cutter accosted bus passengers Friday morning — an incident that ended quietly but highlights ongoing Winnipeg Transit struggles, officials say.

Sean Ewers, 42, was on his way to work, when a man laying across the bench at the front of the No. 11 bus on Henderson Highway stood up.

The man fumbled in his pocket and stared at Ewers, who runs a Jamaican restaurant on Portage Avenue, and accused him of stealing his money, in a daze.

He pulled out the weapons and yelled at Ewers and other passengers and swung the knife.

Ewers, who worked for a decade as a security guard in Jamaica, said he kept his composure as the man kept yelling and another passenger yelled back. At the next stop, the man with hammer and knife got off, along with scared commuters.

“If I didn’t have the training… maybe it could have gone worse. If it was somebody else who panicked and started swinging, he would get the adrenaline and done something,” Ewers said.

“I’m shaken for the other people who are terrified.”

Ewers said he didn’t call police himself after the 9:30 a.m. incident, but the bus driver had said he would.

“Winnipeg Transit is not aware of any incident on board a bus Friday morning that required police to be called, and we would encourage anyone who witnesses a violent or threatening incident aboard a bus to report what they saw to police,” a Transit spokeswoman told the Free Press in an email.

“We would assist with any potential investigation by providing whatever information we can.”

She noted there are numerous safety initiatives for Transit, including surveillance, bus driver shields and training.

However, anecdotally, violence on buses and in Transit shelters appears to be rising, although no officials could provide hard data.

“I’m shaken for the other people who are terrified.” – Sean Ewers

A Winnipeg Police Service spokesman could not supply data on recent violent incidents on buses Friday afternoon, but said talk among officers may flag an uptick in the downtown and city core.

Winnipeg Transit reported 54 assaults against drivers, as of November 2021, and 74 throughout 2020.

Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1505, which represents operators and mechanics, recently said that number rises to 73 in 2021 to date, and 88 in 2020, when serious verbal attacks are included.

Riders have also been attacked, with three passengers assaulted on buses during a seven-day period in September, including two stabbings.

“It might sound a little numb, but it happens more often than you’d think. I get reports from incidents involving bus drivers at least twice a week — last weekend, I got three reports,” said James Van Gerwen, ATU 1505 executive vice-president.

He said hadn’t been notified of the morning incident, as of Friday afternoon. “The sad thing is if it doesn’t involve my operators, I don’t hear about it.”

“There’s no control, there’s no authority on the buses to take care of situations– I think people know that and people are abusing it.” – James Van Gerwen, ATU 1505 executive vice-president.

Van Gerwen drove buses for 17 years and has been on the executive of the union for seven years.

“It’s aggressively getting worse over the years,” he said of violence on Transit vehicles. “People are just getting more aggravated.

“There’s no control, there’s no authority on the buses to take care of situations — I think people know that and people are abusing it.”

The local union has been calling for a specialized security force for years.

“They should implement security on the bus — have something, something that no weapon, no sharp tools are on the bus,” Ewers agreed.

Coun. Matt Allard previously confirmed the city’s transit advisory committee will recommend some form of bus security force for council consideration. There is still no set date for that to take place, he said in December.

erik.pindera@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @erik_pindera

Erik Pindera
Reporter

Erik Pindera reports for the city desk, with a particular focus on crime and justice.

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