A Charlotte Area Transit System bus driver w a s attacked on the job this week , police said .
The 60-year - old woman was assaulted near Ashley Road at around 3:30 p .m . Tuesday and suffered minor injuries, acc ording to Ch arlott e- Me c klen burg po lice . In an incident report, CMPD wrote that the driver did not know the accused a tta cker, who has been issued a citation for assault on a public operator. Police did not publicly identify the accused attacker when asked by WFAE.
Drivers have been urging city and transportation leaders to improve safety measures for drivers since driver Ethan Rivera was shot and killed while on duty Feb. 11. Police say the shooting t hat k illed Riv era stemmed from a road rage incident.
CATS reported that there had been at l east 5 9 assaults on operators between 2017 and Ap ril 14 . The highest number of assaults happened in 2017 with 15, and 2019 had the lowest number at seven, with 14 assaults in 2021. The assault numbers included two operator shootings, Rivera’s death was one of them. CATS also did an audit of its bus fleet and replaced 11 defective radios.
Drivers urged Charlotte City Council members last month for more money and beefed up safety. Driver Renee Holzbach told council members that her nose was broken during an assault. And one driver told WFAE, “we’re a target sitting in that seat.”
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