What to Know
- On Monday, NBC 4 New York was aboard a bus that was being retrofitted with a partition transit officials have dubbed "the cockpit."
- Union officials have pushed for years to get a barrier between the driver and the public. However, previous efforts with plexiglass led to a dangerous glare.
- Transit union officials say assaults on bus drivers are up 36% -- from 72 the first half of 2022 to 98 in that same period of 2023. Additionally, spitting incidents are up 21% -- from 95 last year to 115 this year.
It has become a disturbing trend: MTA officials say four bus drivers have been attacked on the job in the past week alone. However, the agency is looking for ways to protect their employees.
A recent video circulating online shows a group of people outside a bus in Brooklyn pushing and shoving each other -- when all of a sudden, a passenger takes a swing at the driver.
The MTA says of this particular incident, that when three other bus drivers tried to help the first one, they too were assaulted. All are recovering.
“It’s outrageous. It's totally outrageous," Richard Davey, the MTA’s NYC Transit president, said of just one example of the recent violence that is plaguing bus drivers.
"I was, one: happy that our employees weren't seriously hurt. Two: p----d off that our employees, who once again are trying to move New Yorkers around the city are being subjected to this kind of treatment," Davey said.
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On Monday, NBC 4 New York was aboard a bus that was being retrofitted with a partition transit officials have dubbed "the cockpit."
Union officials have pushed for years to get a barrier between the driver and the public. However, previous efforts with plexiglass led to a dangerous glare.
“I believe that this is the start. It should reduce assaults drastically," bus operator Edward Burt said.
Burt said the video of last week's assault, as well as a recent video of a passenger throwing coffee in the driver's face reminded him of a passenger who tried to flag him down.
“I was gonna cut him a break because I was like, 'wow, he must have really needed the bus,' and this gentleman decided to just spat [sic] on my face because he couldn’t get on a bus in the middle of the street," Burt said.
Davey also believes that these partitions will reduce assaults.
We wanna make sure [bus drivers] come to work, go home safely, protected from the public.
TWU Local President Richard Davis
“We believe the cockpit will help reduce those assaults of people trying to reach around and strike at our employees or throw coffee on them, for example,” Davey said.
Transit union officials say assaults on bus drivers are up 36% -- from 72 the first half of 2022 to 98 in that same period of 2023. Additionally, spitting incidents are up 21% -- from 95 last year to 115 this year.
“Like the airplanes pilot is protected same thing here with bus operator, we wanna make sure they come to work, go home safely, protected from the public," TWU Local President Richard Davis said.
The cockpit barriers will be rolled out on two routes this fall for a 90-day pilot. If successful, they’ll expand citywide with the initial cost around $48 million.
Transit officials are also debuting new electronic e-mirrors to cut down on the risk of buses striking pedestrians or other vehicles.
