Surge in transport operator assaults sparks urgent safety call

This call for safety comes after a new study from the Mineta Transportation Institute (MTI), A National-Level Hazard: Growing Assaults on Transit Staff, revealed that assaults on public transit workers worldwide have risen sharply in recent years, with 86% of all attacks since 2003 taking place between 2015 and 2024. Between 2021 and 2024, the most recent four years of data, the United States and Canada are at the center of this trend, accounting for 41% of all global attacks on transit employees. Bus drivers are among the most vulnerable.

The U.S. alone accounts for more than one third of the global total and the report authors, Brian Michael Jenkins and Bruce R. Butterworth, said that reducing the risk to transit employees is an immediate critical issue that requires attention.

“The transit employees who were attacked were just trying to do their jobs, but their unique exposure as public-facing workers operating alone, easily accessible to their passengers and often being the ‘lone enforcer’ of transit regulations, puts them at higher risk,” said Butterworth.

The report explains that:

• Violence primarily affects public-facing transit workers, especially bus drivers, onboard staff, and isolated employees.
• Bus drivers account for 63% of attacks in the U.S. and Canada.
• Many incidents stem from routine passenger interactions (e.g., fare enforcement).
• Over 85% of attacks are committed by lone individuals rather than groups; typically adult males between ages 19–30, using no or improvised weapons
• There were few links to organized crime or extremism, suggesting the trend reflects broader societal pressures.

“We urge transit agencies, unions, and policymakers to collaborate and take a serious, systematic look at the data so that specific risks can be identified in each system,” said Jenkins. “ We also urge transit agencies to adjust or find procedures that improve worker safety and reduce the risk to transit employees.”

Figure 1. Attacks in the USA and Canada 2003-2024