Lawmakers Look to Protect Bus Drivers
January 21st, 2020 by Jake Stofan
After two high profile attacks Florida lawmakers are hoping to create more protections for public bus drivers.
New legislation would make assaulting a public bus driver a felony punishable by up to five years in prison.
It would also require public transit providers to develop risk reduction programs and drivers to take conflict de-escalation training courses.
The issue has gained particular notoriety in Hillsborough County.
“Their lives in some cases are being threatened. They’re being threatened that someone is going to assault them and we take that very, very serious. And it rings really true at our agency because we have experienced tragic events both in May and recently in November we have another very serious event that has brought that issue to the forefront,” said Colin Mulloy with the Hillsborough Area Regional Transit Authority.
The bill also calls for the deployment of safety measures to protect bus drivers like barriers around drivers.
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