April 3, 2020 | NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS
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Transit ridership plummets, and cleaners work overtime
Mass transit is getting a lot less
“mass” since COVID-19 began
keeping millions of students and
workers at home. For the first
time in its 50-hear history, Port-
land-area transit agency TriMet
is calling on the public to take
transit only if necessary, and
asks those who ride to maintain
six feet of distance from other
riders and the operator.
TriMet buses board only at
the front, so passengers must
briefly pass within six feet of
operators, but that’s not thought
to be especially risky as long as
passengers don’t stay in the
driver area or try to engage driv-
ers in conversation. Nearly half
of TriMet’s buses have plexi-
glass safety panels that can be
closed to offer drivers greater
protection from exposure, and
the agency is prioritizing use of
those buses. Drivers have been
given hand sanitizer, but the
agency hasn’t been able to pro-
cure disinfectant wipes.
Meanwhile, many TriMet
cleaners have been working 20
to 30 hours a week of overtime:
Each night, members of Amal-
gamated Transit Union (ATU)
Local 757 who work in mainte-
nance are wiping disinfectant on
all frequently touched surfaces
Photo courtesy of riMet
PAGE 2 |
Members of ATU Local 757 wear masks as they disinfect TriMet light rail cars.
in all buses and trains—includ-
ing railings, straps, doors, exit
buttons, seats, and all parts of
operator cabins. [TriMet made a
video of the new cleaning pro-
tocol here.] During the day,
maintenance crews are also wip-
ing frequently touched surfaces
at rail stations and transit cen-
ters.
Local 757 officer Kevin Ki-
noshita—who works in the
maintenance division at
TriMet’s Center garage— says
the enhanced cleaning was
helped greatly by the just-in-
time arrival of nine new fogger
machines that spray a mist of
hydrogen peroxide solution in
vehicles. The mist touches every
surface, and is then removed
with fans and the vehicles’
HVAC systems.
TriMet ridership is down
nearly half since the crisis be-
gan, from an estimated 1.9 mil-
lion bus and light rail boardings
a week in February to 1 million
boardings the week of March
15-21.
Fares make up about half of
TriMet’s revenue, and a regional
payroll tax makes up the other
half; both sources of revenue are
plummeting in the crisis, but
emergency aid to transit agen-
cies is in several COVID-19 re-
lief bills Congress is consider-
ing. TriMet spokesperson
Roberta Alstadt told the Labor
Press there are currently no
plans for layoffs.
But if you want a model for
crisis response by a transit
agency, look elsewhere in Ore-
gon, said Local 757 vice presi-
dent Jon Hunt, who’s been
working from home since the
union office shut down March
16. To keep drivers safe,
Salem’s Cherriot transit agency
and Lane Transit District in Eu-
gene-Springfield made all buses
fare-free, directed passengers to
board through the back door un-
less the wheelchair ramp is
needed, and sent drivers who are
over 65 home on paid adminis-
trative leave (older people are at
greater risk if infected by the
coronavirus.)