F
FutureMayor
Guest
Protecting the Perception of Safety on Mississauga Transit
Madam Mayor:
On Friday, June 7, I boarded the Route 19 bus from Port Credit GO Station at 3:05 p.m. to the City Centre.
At Mineola Road a large group of students from Port Credit Secondary School boarded the bus. Before the front doors of the bus opened a loud bang could be heard from the outside. It was assumed that the bus had run over a plastic bottle before fully stopping.
As the bus reached Dundas Street a majority of students began to depart from the bus when an even louder explosion came from within the bus which startled everyone including many seniors and small children who were visibly shaken. The smell of smoke flooded the bus and the bus driver locked the back doors and demanded who had launched a firework inside the bus. The students began to kick at the back door when the bus driver finally let them go. I spoke to the bus driver when we reached the City Centre transit terminal and expressed my concern.
While this turned out to be some practical joke by a group of students, this behavior is unacceptable and should not be allowed to continue into the future. The feeling of safety on our public transit system should be protected, especially in light of recent events involving suspects in our city.
While the incident occurred off school property, it clearly involved students attending Port Credit Secondary School. I strongly request that the administration of this school acknowledge this incident with its students and explain the criminal consequences if caught in the future.
Furthermore, I request that Peel Regional Police and or Mississauga Transit officials be present at the Hurontario and Mineloa bus stop after each school day for the at least the next week to monitor students boarding the bus for firecrackers and to reassure the traveling public of their safety.
Many thanks,
Louroz Mercader
Madam Mayor:
On Friday, June 7, I boarded the Route 19 bus from Port Credit GO Station at 3:05 p.m. to the City Centre.
At Mineola Road a large group of students from Port Credit Secondary School boarded the bus. Before the front doors of the bus opened a loud bang could be heard from the outside. It was assumed that the bus had run over a plastic bottle before fully stopping.
As the bus reached Dundas Street a majority of students began to depart from the bus when an even louder explosion came from within the bus which startled everyone including many seniors and small children who were visibly shaken. The smell of smoke flooded the bus and the bus driver locked the back doors and demanded who had launched a firework inside the bus. The students began to kick at the back door when the bus driver finally let them go. I spoke to the bus driver when we reached the City Centre transit terminal and expressed my concern.
While this turned out to be some practical joke by a group of students, this behavior is unacceptable and should not be allowed to continue into the future. The feeling of safety on our public transit system should be protected, especially in light of recent events involving suspects in our city.
While the incident occurred off school property, it clearly involved students attending Port Credit Secondary School. I strongly request that the administration of this school acknowledge this incident with its students and explain the criminal consequences if caught in the future.
Furthermore, I request that Peel Regional Police and or Mississauga Transit officials be present at the Hurontario and Mineloa bus stop after each school day for the at least the next week to monitor students boarding the bus for firecrackers and to reassure the traveling public of their safety.
Many thanks,
Louroz Mercader