City authorities recognize and understand the importance of constant transport infrastructure growth and modernization to be able to satisfy the needs of Winnipeg citizens and a workforce visiting our city every day. Mayor Brian Bowman says the city transport system needs a major overhaul.
“We really have to make tough decisions to really improve the transit. I'm from Charleswood. I rode 66 all my life, and the routes haven't changed much. This is your grandparents' transit service. ”
In addition to putting surveillance cameras inside buses, the city is also working on installing cameras on the side of all buses so drivers can see who is getting on and off the vehicles.
The city authorities also plan to install safety shields on all Winnipeg buses. The cost to purchase shields for all Winnipeg buses is estimated at $3.15 million. The local transit union and other organizations have been pushing for since the February 2017 murder of a driver.
If approved, the shields will be purchased from AROW Global, which specializes in transit window systems, and will be an adjustable pane one-piece door design.
The decision now passes to EPC and then city council for final debate and approval.
Also, December 20th of 2018 the City of Winnipeg officially opened two-point duty Winnipeg Transit inspector stations. Both stations are located downtown, one of them at eastbound Graham Avenue and Fort Street, another on eastbound Portage Avenue at Vaughan Street, near The Bay.
The locations were strategically chosen by comparing incident data, according to Randy Tonellier Winnipeg Transit‘s Manager of Operations.
Bowman said that the city council should be prepared to take political risks to shake things up for the better, and that, although he calls 2019 the “year of transit,” the council will have to go beyond the current authority.
Matt Allard, a member of the Transit Advisory Committee, said the city will buy new buses, many of which are articulated, so they will carry more passengers, at about the same overall operating costs. It is great information for all citizens of Winnipeg and people, who come here for work.
Winnipeg bus drivers safety means a lot for city`s transportation inspectors. This is a huge plan, with a pretty high bill that the city of Winnipeg will have to pay to protect the drivers and make transit transportation safer for everyone else too. The public transportation system is a very important part of Winnipeg`s daily life, because of thousands people use it every day to commute to work and back home, they rely on the system and people need to be able to catch that bus on time and make it to work or home to their families.
The city authorities recognize the growth of our city`s needs, the population grows every year and the workforce visiting Winnipeg constantly increases as well. Public transportation is a very important part of city infrastructure modernization and development.