The CEO of the Toronto Transit Commission says it is unacceptable that no one came to help a bus driver who was accosted by a man for about 30 minutes last week.
The incident occurred the morning of Sept. 6 near Bathurst Street and Drewry Avenue. According to police, the driver was trying to reposition the vehicle before allowing passengers on when a man ran up and started to punch the bus while yelling and swearing.
The bus driver did not open the doors due to the individual’s behaviour. The man then stood in front of the bus, police said, eventually entering when the driver tried to let some other passengers on.
In video viewed by CTV News Toronto, the man is heard making references to the driver’s race, as well as swearing at her.
“There’s gaps and I've asked staff to take a look at the timeline of what's occurred and help us address that,” TTC CEO Rick Leary told reporters on Wednesday, saying that it was “not acceptable” that no officials came to the driver’s aid.
“We intend to bring a report to the board on the 26th of September with some recommendations on how we can do more to address this,” he said. “Our customers want to feel safe by seeing employees and having them visible. Our employees want to feel safe by seeing others, the police, the special constables and other employees around that can respond.”
Toronto police say they were not called to the scene. They started an investigation after a report was filed.
Since then, a man has been arrested in connection to the incident. The suspect has been charged with mischief, intimidation, and causing a disturbance.
It’s not yet clear when the TTC was notified of the incident. A spokesperson said there was an injury at track level at Sheppard West Station at the same time
“However, we continue to assess what we could have done differently to assist this operator during the incident," TTC spokesperson Stuart Green said on Tuesday.
“Like everyone, we are shocked by what this video shows,” he said.
The head of bus operations has been in direct contact with the driver as soon as he was notified of the incident, Green added.
Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow said this kind of “verbal abuse” and racist commentary should never be tolerated.
“It was just unbelievably disruptive and hateful,” she said.
“I spoke to the president of the union, ATU Local 113 about how we can ensure that there can be immediate help when something like this happens to a worker because she shouldn't have to endure it for half an hour.”
With files from CTV News Toronto’s Beth Macdonell
