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Riders tell CapMetro board system is unsafe, urge stricter fare enforcement and review of suspension
Summary
Three riders told CapMetro's Sept. 10 public hearing that drivers and system processes are failing to keep riders safe, that unpaid fares create safety risks, and that a customer-facing suspension by transit public-safety staff amounted to retaliation; they called for better enforcement, patrols and a review of a six-month suspension notice.
At a public hearing on Sept. 10, three speakers described repeated safety and fare-enforcement incidents they said occur on CapMetro vehicles and asked the board to take action, including more patrols, clearer enforcement authority for drivers, and review of a suspension notice one speaker said was retaliation.
“Riding the bus is not a right. It's a privilege,” Darren Smith told the board. Smith, who identified himself as a regular rider for six years, said he has experienced threats and unsafe behavior at stops and on buses and urged the authority to patrol bus stops and give drivers the authority to remove passengers who do not pay fares.
Zenobia Joseph said she was threatened on a bus in an incident she described to the board and urged the authority to “invest in safety.” She told the board she contacted the driver after the incident and was told the driver’s options were limited to reporting to a supervisor. Joseph said she is pursuing legal options, including a temporary restraining order against the person she identified as threatening her and provided an address that she said is the other rider’s residence.
Carlos Leon said he had received an email on Sept. 8 from Daryl Jamail, whom he identified in his remarks as CapMetro’s senior director of public safety and emergency management, notifying him of an alleged six-month suspension from CapMetro transit services. Leon told the board the suspension was “unwarranted” and a retaliatory response to his prior whistleblowing about employee misconduct. He said he provided a written packet to the board documenting his interactions, and he urged the board to restore his access to CapMetro services immediately and to discipline the staff member he named.
Speakers described operational limits they encountered when they tried to get immediate help: Smith said drivers commonly tell riders who lack money to board anyway, while Joseph said 911 told her the incident she reported was not an active emergency and 311 usually only offers a possible callback. Leon said his packet includes a three-page suspension letter he disputes and that the letter’s process—five business days to request a hearing—was insufficient in his view. Leon said he intends to pursue further legal and administrative channels and asked the board to act.
Board Vice Chair Paige Ellis received the public comments during the budget and service-change hearing. Staff and the board did not announce any immediate remedial action at the hearing; the record shows the public hearing was closed at 12:50 p.m. and the board was scheduled to consider the budget and service proposals at a subsequent meeting.
Speakers asked the board for several specific steps: increased patrols at bus stops, clearer authority or training for drivers to remove nonpaying riders when safety is at risk, and review or reversal of what Leon described as a six-month suspension notice from public-safety staff. Leon and Joseph also raised Title VI and equity concerns in other public comments about service distribution (see separate article on proposed service changes).
