In a separate statement, Alfred said the bus driver is in stable condition. Last Wednesday, another TTC worker was stabbed in the back at Dupont Station.Ī suspect in that incident was charged with assault, assault with a weapon and weapons dangerous. Our thoughts are with him and his family during this time.” “We wish our colleague a fast and full recovery. “We believe that everyone should be able to do their job without fear of violence and we are working closely with Toronto Police Services (Sic) who continue to investigate this incident.” The safety of our employees and the safety of our customers is the most important thing to me,” Leary said in the statement. In a statement, TTC CEO Rick Leary said that he spent the afternoon at the hospital speaking with the employee and his family, along with ATU Local 113 President Marvin Alfred. “It's really upsetting, actually, that somebody can just be in the course of operating a bus up and down the street in Toronto and this is the outcome,” Ross added. We take safety very seriously and the safety of our employees very seriously at the TTC and it's troubling,” TTC Chief Operating Officer Jim Ross said at the scene. The TTC says the driver has been employed with the transit agency for over 20 years. The area is closed as police investigate. “Information at this time indicates that the individual who committed the stabbing is a young male, approximately 16 to 17 years old, male, Black, with a dark complexion, wearing dark clothing and his hair was in braids,” Harris said. They are described as Black males in their early teens. The man, who is in his 50s, was rushed to a local trauma centre for serious, non-life threatening injuries, police said.Ī group of four to five suspects fled south on foot, Harris said. Richard Harris told reporters at the scene. “As a result of that interaction, the driver was unfortunately stabbed multiple times, in both his torso and in his shoulder area as well,” Insp. The bus driver, police said, then pulled over and the altercation continued outside of the bus before the driver was stabbed with a knife. Police said the dispute started on the bus while it was travelling. An investigation is ongoing.Toronto police say a TTC bus driver has serious injuries after being stabbed multiple times over a fare dispute on Wednesday, a week after another worker for the transit agency was stabbed.Īt around 1 p.m., police said a male TTC employee was involved in a fare dispute with a group of suspects in the area of Keele Street and Gulliver Road. "They are ordering 500 new buses we need them with bus operator compartments, we need the police to more frequently show their faces on the buses." "If we don’t get the protection we need then you’re not gonna get the service you need," said Patafio. They said that riders could be the ones who bear the fallout if drivers don't feel safe about coming to work, hinting at possible job action. The union said members also want cockpits, similar to ones used by pilots, to protect drivers. We need cops," said union chair Richard Thorne. "Without a safe operator, there will never be a safe passenger. Officials said he is expected to recover, but that doesn't give much comfort to the union, who is calling for more protection. Union members gathered outside the hospital where the driver was being treated later Tuesday. Police later released images of the three men they believe to be responsible for the attack. "If that knife was inches higher, we would be talking about a death." "The bus driver defended himself and we are very happy he’s not dead frankly," said Patafio. The other two men then boarded and threatened the driver with boxcutters, police said. The suspect allegedly then slashed the driver with a knife in his left side and slashed him above his eye, according to union officials. That's when police said that the driver and the suspect started arguing. Once the door was broken, the bus was not able to be driven, so the driver ushered passengers off the bus. "He ripped open that back door, and it was very violent," said TWU Local 100's JP Patafio. Get Tri-state area news and weather forecasts to your inbox.
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