GoRaleigh bus operators are concerned about what they say are unsafe conditions and mismanagement on the job, and they’ve been asking the Raleigh City Council for help since June. Operators brought the issue up again at the council’s October 14 meeting.
“Every day my coworkers and I perform one of the most essential yet often-overlooked public services,” bus operator Natalie Brown told the city council during the public comment period. “We transport thousands of residents safely to work, school, appointments, and home again. We do this with professionalism and pride. However, I stand before you today because the working environment for operators has become increasingly difficult and at times unsafe.”
Operators feel “unsupported and disrespected” by management, Brown said. “We are seeking fairness, respect, and the right to a safe workplace.”
GoRaleigh drivers officially work for RATP Dev—a large international company that operates more than 100 different local transportation systems—not the City of Raleigh. But the workers came to the city council with their concerns because, as GoRaleigh employee James Limehouse said during public comment, “We move the city. And if y’all want us to continue to do this, then make it safe for us.”
Earlier this month, a GoRaleigh bus operator was arrested following an incident with a passenger. Her colleagues spoke up for her during the October public comment session, explaining that she was defending herself in an unsafe situation.
“Incidents like this expose the gaps in our safety protocols and the inconsistent treatment of transit workers when they are victims of violence,” Brown said.
Brown’s colleague Clifton Hill added, “We face daily threats, being cursed at, spit on, and even assaulted” by passengers.
“We need real safety,” Hill continued. “We need transit police units that build relationships with operators and the community. Relations over intimidation.”
“I don’t think it’s fair for me to be driving up the road, moving passengers and getting cussed out and threatened,” bus operator Michael General said when it was his turn at the podium. “We’re told to stay in our seats, shut up, and drive. At what point do you take your seatbelt off when someone is approaching you? We had an operator who was stabbed in the seat.”
In response to INDY’s request for comment, a RATP Dev USA spokesperson wrote in an email that struck a concerned tone but was light on details. “We are aware of the concerns raised by the City and our employees. GoRaleigh drivers and staff perform an important and valued service for our community. Their safety and the safety of all riders, as well as the general public, is our number one priority at RATP Dev USA.”
The spokesperson added that “in addition to our previously scheduled quarterly safety meetings with [the Raleigh Police Department], our RATP Dev USA leadership team in Raleigh has been working with and will continue to work with the City, RPD and Capitol Police, the private security company contracted by the City to provide officers at bus stations, on how to enhance safety measures, including facility safety, when it comes to public transportation for passengers and drivers.”
The City of Raleigh sent INDY a nearly identical comment: “We are aware of the concerns raised by RATP Dev employees,” Andrea Epstein, communications supervisor, for the city’s transportation department, wrote in an email. “GoRaleigh drivers and staff perform an important and valued service for our community. Their safety -and the safety of all riders- is something we take very seriously. Our staff has been working with, and continues to work with RATP Dev, on ways to enhance safety measures, including facility safety, when it comes to public transportation for passengers and drivers.”
INDY asked RPD what the enhanced safety measures would look like and whether ACORNS, Raleigh’s co-response unit that pairs law enforcement with social workers, would be involved.
Public information officer David Davis responded in an email that RPD already has Hospitality Units patrolling the downtown district, including near the GoRaleigh Station, “allowing for faster response times and a greater visible presence to deter criminal activity and enhance public confidence.”
During the June meeting, Brown spoke about an “escalated amount of violence on the bus” and asked for more support to “ensure the safety of the men and women who move this city.”
At the June and October meetings, operators spoke about potential violations of their union’s collective bargaining agreement. GoRaleigh operators are represented by ATU Local 1328, a branch of the Amalgamated Transit Union, which represents public transit employees in the U.S. and Canada. INDY has reached out to ATU for comment and we will update this story if they respond.
Chloe Courtney Bohl is a Report for America corps member. Follow her on Bluesky or reach her at [email protected]. Comment on this story at [email protected].