Edmonton bus driver stabbed, 1 charged with aggravated assault

A bus driver was taken to hospital after he was stabbed on the job.

An Edmonton transit operator was hospitalized after being stabbed by a passenger on the weekend.

Police say officers responded to a stopped Edmonton Transit Service (ETS) bus in the area of 35 Street and 119 Avenue at 11 p.m. on Sunday.

The bus driver was taken to hospital with non-life threatening injuries.

A suspect was arrested a short time later and has been charged with aggravated assault and several breaches of a release order.

The city says it is taking the assault very seriously.

“We are actively supporting the transit operator who was assaulted and injured during their shift earlier this week and fully supporting the Edmonton Police Service as they investigate this incident,” Carrie Hotton-MacDonald of ETS said in a statement to CTV News Edmonton.

“We have zero tolerance for violence against our employees, and assaulting a transit operator is a serious Criminal Code offence in Canada. We appreciate the assistance of those who responded to the incident, including the bystanders and first responders who helped onsite.”

The union that represents the driver says the driver was lucky.

“He’s still in the hospital. He’s stable. He’s in good spirits, all things considered,” Raj Brar of Amalgamated Transit Union Local 569 told CTV News Edmonton.

“He showed up to do his job, to serve the public and the community, and this is what he faced. I want him to know that every single transit worker in Edmonton and ATU members across the country are thinking of him.”

Brar is calling for the city to do more to protect transit workers.

“Heightened safety measures, better protections in the buses, more transit peace officers, more budget for city police, for law enforcement to use serious charges and uphold Bill C 14,” he said.

“We want it to be used, any attack on transit workers should be taken serious.”

With files from CTV News Edmonton’s Evan Kenny