Charlotte Republican Leaders Unveil Bulletproof Partition For Consideration By CATS
CHARLOTTE, NC – Charlotte area republican leaders making a push for better safety measures for CATS bus drivers.
On Monday, they unveiled a transparent partition, with more than an inch of bulletproof polymer that could isolate city bus drivers and add to their safety.
“The republican slate that we’ve put together all came together like a startup company would and said, how can we act while others talk. And we all jumped into action,” said Charlotte city councilman Tariq Bokhari.
Bokhari spearheaded the effort to come up with a prototype that could be quickly implemented for bus driver safety.
“Inside one week to go from idea to fully functional bullet proof enclosure around a CATS driver,” said Bokhari.
Bokhari enlisted the help of four local companies who created the design, sourced the material and assembled the heavy, bulletproof partition.
The move comes weeks after the shooting death of CATS bus driver Ethan Rivera during a road rage incident.
Since his death, drivers and their supporters have been rallying for change. Bokhari says this could be one answer.
“We decided purposefully that we would take it to this point and now we have a working, functioning, tested prototype that will ultimately be handed to them should they decide to accept it,” said Bokhari.
CATS officials sent a statement saying they have been in discussions with the bus manufacturer for safety options and “are open to further discussions about the feasibility of this technology.”
“I’m happy to see that the voices are being hear. They’re starting to take the measurements to at least get better safety,” said Willis Draughn Jr.
He is a community advocate and Charlotte City Mayor candidate. He says the prototype shows promise.
“The drivers are still talking to me daily. They’re still fearful for their lives in certain positions in certain stops. So we’re gong to keep pushing and hopefully they can continue to make better safety measures,” said Draughn Jr.
Bokhari says the bulletproof shield cost just under $5,000 dollars to manufacture. He says CATS would have to go through more inspections and standards before they could be installed.
