Bus Driver Bulletin, issue 1!

Hello and welcome to Bus Driver Bulletin, a roundup of biggest and most interesting news i've been able to find from the bus world this week! I'll post some stories and links to where I found them. This issue covers news from September 27 to October 5, 2024.

Date	Location	Story
9-27	Minneapolis, MN	Transit bus operator Teron Hess told CBS news about how his job saved his life, having been homeless before he started, and how he shows compassion to people in similar situations in his work.
9-28	Danville, VA	Danville transit is conducting a survey on a proposed regional bus service connecting southern Virginia and North Carolina.
9-29	Phoenix, AZ	Tire failure causes flixbus-contracted coach to collide with highway median, killing one and injuring 18.
9-30	Los Angeles, CA	The suspect in the hijacking of a Metro bus and fatal shooting of a passenger on 9-25 has been charged with murder and kidnapping. Officials have given statements, and the Metro Board and LADOT committee have discussed operator safety improvement plans.
10-1	Aspen, CO	ATU local 1774, representing operators for the Roaring Fork Transportation Authority, received approval from the Colorado department of labor to go on strike next year if a contract agreement cannot be reached by New Year's.
10-1	Bangkok, Thailand	A school bus caught fire and killed 23 students. Driver has since been arrested for failing to report the incident. A mass funeral has been held in the students' home province.
10-2	Paju, South Korea	Defector steals bus, rams into barricade on the Tongil Bridge! The man was attempting to return to North Korea after having defected over ten years ago.
10-2	Rappahannock County, VA	Virginia Dept of Education reports a 5% improvement in school bus driver staffing, having filled 700 vacant positions in the past three years. This School Transportation News special report includes a great interview with superintendent and substitute driver Shannon Grimsley.
10-2	Duluth, MN	DTA's third annual recruiting event brought in local celebrities, and had members of the public - including Duluth News Tribune correspondent Brielle Bredsten - drive a bus on a skills course!
10-2	Bethlehem, PA	Intercity coach company Trans-Bridge Lines announced a "stuff-a-bus" donation drive to transport aid supplies to victims of Hurricane Helene.
10-2	Medford, NY	The owner of East End Bus Lines, a long island schoolbus company that went bankrupt circa 2018, pled guilty to fraudulently taking out loans to sustain the company.
10-2	Strasbourg, France	European Mobility Expo was last week! Some interesting designs were on display, look at that Otokar minibus! so cute!
10-2	Lake County, OH	Suburban transit system LakeTran celebrated its 50th anniversary. The public agency's CEO discussed its somewhat unique history, and the importance of its dial-a-ride service. LakeTran is currently expanding its operations and maintenance facility, and plans to increase the span of service of its local routes.
10-3	Columbus, OH	Neighbors complained to the city council that Greyhound and Barons Bus are continuing to use a terminal that the city had ordered them to abandon last year in favor of other stop locations. This is one of numerous Greyhound stations recently abandoned, a troubling national trend.
10-3	Deep Bay, Canada	A new BC Transit bus route, the 99 from Courtenay to Deep Bay, bridges a unique gap between routes and means all major towns on Vancouver Island are connected to one another by transit. It's a service of the Regional District of Nanaimo. It began operation last month, but the Comox Valley Record just now published their story about it.
10-3	London, UK	Stagecoach has been awarded a contract to operate a shuttle service across the Silvertown Tunnel for cyclists. The tunnel is set to open next year and has a dedicated bus lane, but no pedestrian facilities.
10-3	Detroit, MI	A DDOT transit bus operator was sentenced to six months in jail due to a moving violation that killed a pedestrian. The pedestrian was crossing the street while the bus made a left turn.
10-4	Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania	A Capricorn coach bus overturned en route, killing four.
10-4	Portland, ME	The South Portland department of public works has ordered a carpenter to remove the benches he installed pro bono at city bus stops, citing accessibility law but having no plan to install new, compliant benches.
10-4	Philadelphia, PA	SEPTA passenger in critical condition after being shot onboard a bus near 3rd and Allegheny. Shooter was arrested after a car chase.
10-4	Vancouver, Canada	BC transit released a statement to the Times-Colonist about an incident on September 24th, when the rear door interlock on a bus running on route 20 failed, causing a passenger to fall out of the moving vehicle.
10-5	Soddy Daisy, TN	Schoolbus contractor First Student and Soddy-Daisy Fire Department held a "stuff-a-bus" community donation drive to fill a school bus with aid supplies to transport to areas affected by Hurricane Helene.
10-5	Denver, CO	Denver RTD held a groundbreaking ceremony for the city's first BRT line on East Colfax. This line will augment the city's highest-ridership local routes, in a historic area previously unserved by the light rail system.