The city is one of several aiming to improve driver safety.
Philadelphia will test new bulletproof enclosures on eight of its buses in the coming months, a move spurred partially by the fatal shooting of a SEPTA driver by a passenger in October, 2023.
Violent attacks have plagued the system in recent years, U.S. News reports, “including one in which eight high school students waiting to board a SEPTA bus after class were wounded by gunshots from suspects who jumped from a car and opened fire.” The article quotes John Samuelsen, international president of the Transport Workers Union of America, calling attacks on bus drivers “the dirty secret of public transit in America.” New York City and Philadelphia see over 20 assaults against operators per week combined.
The enclosures, which cost between $15,000 and $18,000 to install, will be tested and adjusted based on driver feedback.
FULL STORY: Philadelphia Tests Bullet-Resistant Glass Enclosures Aimed at Protecting Bus Drivers
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