Maya McFadden Photo
Alehya Moseley at the bus stop: What about back-up drivers?
A sudden surge of drivers calling in sick led to ten more cancelations of New Haven bus routes— and riders changing their plans to adjust.
Sixty-one New Haven area drivers called in sick on Monday, 14 on Tuesday, according to CT Transit General Manager Cole Pouliot. He didn’t have the final number yet for Wednesday, but said it had decreased.
Still, the agency cut 10 bus runs for the day as a result. They included the 4:40 p.m. Route 243 bus from downtown to Brookside and the return 5:13 p.m. back downtown; the 6:40 p.m. Route 243 from downtown to Amity Road and the 7:22 p.m. bus back. Other afternoon cancelations included downtown routes to North Haven, Meriden, Putnam Place and Hamden Plaza n Hamden, and the Connecticut Post Mall. Pouliot stressed that “99.5% of New Haven service went out as scheduled today.”
Riders can keep up to date on changes through the CT Transit website and sign up for email alerts.
Pouliot said he doesn’t know why so many drivers have called in sick.
Sam Gurwitt Photo
Union’s Buccitti: Drivers “scared,” react to non-“essential” treatment.
Ralph Buccitti said he does know why.
Buccitti, business agent for the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 281, said this is not an organized sick-out. Instead, he said, drivers are worn out and fed up with state decisions they feel undervalue their “essential work.”
First came an outbreak that sent 40 employees home two weeks ago at the 2061 State St. CT Transit building. Then came the decision by Gov. Ned Lamont to distribute vaccines by age from here on in, rather than whether people quality as essential workers.
“You’ve got people worn out. They’re working 40, 50, 60-hour weeks. A lot of them are mentally and physically burned. The message to the governor is: What happened to us?”
Buccitti noted that school systems have been vaccinating their bus drivers. Meanwhile, he said, some CT Transit drivers, unvaccinated, continue to shuttle schoolchildren on special routes.
“The operators out here, they’re just scared. So many people contracting this Covid. Why were we essential employees for the 12 months, and now that we’re in line to get our vaccinations, now all of a sudden we’re at the back of the line? … It’s just a radical group of people with a level of frustration: ‘Hey, I’m fatigued. I’m not essential anymore? I never was? What’s the harm?’”
Drivers interviewed Wednesday said the call-ins result from colleagues taking extra Covid-19 precautions and listening to the company’s advice to stay home if they feel sick.
Maya McFadden Photo
Jay boarding bus to the Valley.
Some riders said their travels have not been affected. Others, like Jay, are making adjustments.
While waiting on the Green for the route 255 ride to Ansonia and Seymour, Jay (who declined to give her last name) said she depends on the city bus because she can’t afford to take more socially distanced services like Uber.
Jay said has begun trying to schedule all of her important errands and appointments in one day to avoid the risk of altered or cut bus runs. “Anything that has to do with the bus greatly affects me, because It’s all I have,” she said.
Alehya Moseley, 22 said she stays updated with CT Transit news because she uses public transportation to run errands and visit friends and family often. Her mother is also a CT Transit driver.
Moseley’s only complaint about the buses is that they are often delayed. “They could maybe hire backups to help when people get sick,” Moseley suggested.
Rodney, who has been a CT Transit driver for six years (and also declined to give his last name), said he has gotten complaints from passengers who weren’t notified of the service changes. “It’s mostly older people,” he said. “They don’t want to use much technology, so they can’t get the message.”