The union representing Winnipeg Transit drivers is urgently calling for the installation of full-height safety shields on all buses following a terrifying incident early Thursday morning where a driver was threatened with a hatchet. This latest event underscores a growing concern over passenger safety and driver well-being within the city’s public transportation system.

Union President Describes ‘Hijacking Situation’

James Van Gerwen, president of the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1505, detailed the harrowing experience of a driver at the St. Vital terminal around 1 a.m. According to Van Gerwen, a passenger repeatedly demanded the bus be driven. Once the bus departed the terminal, the passenger produced a hatchet from a bag and reached it around the existing partial safety shield, threatening the operator.

The situation was diffused when a police vehicle, coincidentally driving alongside the bus, was flagged down by the distressed driver. Van Gerwen characterized the incident as “almost like a hijacking situation,” emphasizing the profound psychological impact on the driver, who is relatively new to the job. “This driver is one year into her career, this will stay with her forever,” he stated.

Driver on Leave Amidst Rising Stress Leave Claims

The driver involved in the hatchet threat, though physically unharmed, is now on stress leave. This highlights a significant issue within Winnipeg Transit, as the union reports that over 60 operators are currently on leave due to psychological injury. These absences represent a substantial loss of operational capacity, with the union citing more than 30,000 days and 225,000 hours of lost driver time attributed to such injuries.

Pattern of Violence Against Transit Operators

This near-hijacking is the third reported altercation involving Winnipeg Transit drivers in recent days. Police confirmed on Wednesday that two individuals were facing charges for separate assaults on transit employees within a 10-hour period on Tuesday.

• In one incident, a 51-year-old man allegedly threw a beer can at a driver and bit them while attempting to restrain him after being confronted for his behavior. He was charged with assault.
• In another, a 31-year-old woman, after refusing to pay bus fare, punched a supervisor who was enforcing fare collection outside a stopped bus. She faces a charge of assaulting a peace officer.

These recent events follow a stabbing incident two weeks prior, where a passenger used a syringe to stab a transit driver twice in the leg before fleeing the scene. The passenger reportedly reached around the existing safety shield to carry out the attack.

Transit Exploring Full Shields, Union Urges Action

In response to escalating violence against its drivers, Winnipeg Transit announced in November its intention to explore replacing the partial safety shields, installed on buses in 2019, with full floor-to-ceiling compartments. At the time, Rick Young, Transit’s manager of operations, provided a preliminary estimate of $15 million for the installation of these enhanced barriers.

The City of Winnipeg had allocated approximately $2.7 million in its 2024 capital budget for a pilot project to test the effectiveness of such shields, but this initiative has not yet commenced. The union, however, maintains that the cost of inaction far outweighs the investment in full shields.

“The amount of Workers Compensation Board claims that we must be paying out would pay off the entire shields within two years,” Van Gerwen argued. “So every day they’re holding off on putting these shields in, it’s costing Winnipeggers money.”

City Data and Calls for Broader Solutions

Official city data indicates 42 recorded assaults on bus drivers in uniform this year, with assaults defined according to the Criminal Code. In 2025, the number of recorded assaults stood at 104.

Van Gerwen expressed concern over the pace of implementation, noting that city officials are revising cost estimates for the pilot project for inclusion in next year’s capital budget. He stressed the need to accelerate this timeline. “I need them to push Transit to actually do something,” he urged.

Councilor Evan Duncan echoed the call for enhanced safety on transit, but also pointed to the need for broader societal solutions. “We need to tackle the issue on our streets, and that is holding people, whether it be in custody or some type of facility, in a non-voluntary manner, because we cannot have individuals who are victimizing people out on the streets,” Duncan stated. He suggested that individuals requiring psychiatric care or those committing crimes should be appropriately housed in hospitals, institutions, or the corrections system.

Duncan indicated his support for installing full shields on routes identified as high-risk and anticipates that the issue will be a significant topic during budget discussions following the municipal election in October.