SUDBURY -- Now until Feb. 7, bylaw enforcement officers are riding GOVA transit buses in Greater Sudbury.
City bylaw manager Brendan Adair said the officers are there to protect bus operators and passengers.
“It comes down to ridership," Adair said. "We see lots of volume on a main line, that’s busy from morning to night. So we might be a little bit more present on those lines, and we would select some specific times on other routes to ensure we are covering most of the city.”
“So not a specific time or specific or a specific day but we try to fit it in where we can,” he added.
Between 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 a.m., two bylaw enforcement officers will periodically be riding buses, monitoring things such as mask-wearing and ensuring people pay fares.
Try education first
“They do have enforcement abilities, but everything we do we try to do through education,” said Adair.
“We are focusing on things like wearing masks, because we are really concerned for the health and safety of bus operators, as well as those who use our services. In addition to that, we are looking at things like general rules on the bus as well as making fare payment.”
As of now, this is just a seven-day test. But Mike Bellerose, president of CUPE 4705, said he would like security officers on city busses continued after this week.
“I want this to be a permanent job because at the end of the day, it’s for the safety of our members and it’s for the safety of the public,” Bellerose said.
“There’s been incidents that have occurred in the past and people have been hurt. Hopefully, the enforcement and the presence that’s shown will reduce that.”
City officials said they are looking at extending the security service past this week, but that decision will be made by city council.
