![]() ![]() She’s not the only driver dealing with it.Īnother shuttle driver, who asked to remain anonymous, called the entire situation “out of pocket.” There’s a swarm of people experiencing homelessness boarding the bus at 69th Street Transportation Center each night - from 25 to 75 people, depending on how cold it is. “There’s no way in the world we should run this way.” “We’re the fifth largest transportation company in America,” said Willie Brown, president of the Transit Workers Union Local 234. The transit authority has seven social workers on staff, but they don’t deploy them to the Market Frankford shuttles, because overnight services are “limited.” Just last month, the Philadelphia Police Department opened a substation along the Market Frankford Line at Allegheny Avenue and Emerald Street, but SEPTA is still planning to temporarily close Somerset Station this weekend. But they only staff the line for about a fifth of the time that it runs - and policing has proven an ineffective solution to homelessness, anyway. SEPTA’s solution, so far, has been to deploy Transit Police to turn people away who can’t pay the fare. ![]() Brian Pollitt, executive vice president of the local Transit Workers Union chapter, said the entire line is functioning as a “mobile shelter.”Īnd while some of the passengers just ride the bus to sleep and stay warm, Bradshaw and other drivers said there are others who refuse to wear masks, use drugs and get into altercations on board. ![]() The Market Frankford shuttles are an epicenter. One compounding issue: People who are experiencing homelessness during the pandemic have been using the SEPTA system as a form of shelter in the absence of other services. ![]() SEPTA bus drivers and other public-facing transit employees deal with verbal and physical assaults all the time. WHYY thanks our sponsors - become a WHYY sponsor ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |