Woman in Victoria asked to leave transit bus because she was coughing

VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) - Many people on the streets of Vancouver are wondering if there's too much H1N1 hype and hysteria. This in reaction to news from Victoria that a woman was recently asked to get off a transit bus, because she was coughing.

One man we spoke with says, "I kind of think it's ridiculous." Another woman adds some people who cough aren't always sick. "It does seem a bit over the top...I have a cough myself, but I don't have H1N1, I just have a cough, it's just one of those things. But I've had people move away from me on the bus, so I know how it is." Another man suggests people who are ill should be more considerate of the rest of the public. "Most people are polite enough to do it properly. Cover it up. If you have to cough, you can't really control that."

Many are concerned about what they feel is a bit of a 'hysteria' emerging over H1N1. "The only reason it got so much hype is because people are scared."

In the Victoria incident, an elderly passenger apparently complained to the bus driver that the coughing woman shouldn't be riding on the bus. The driver then asked the woman if she was close enough to her destination to leave the bus and walk the rest of the way. The woman apparently left voluntarily.

Drew Snider with TransLink says a bus driver would have to deal with the situation on a case by case basis. "If it was a real public safety issue, then yeah, thebus driver would have that kind of discretion to make a public safety call, for the sake of 30-40 other people who happen to be on the bus."

On Wednesday, TransLink issued a statement on public transit and the spread of influenza:

"With the advent of "flu season" and continued reports about the H1N1 flu
pandemic, some members of the public have been wondering what if
anything can be done on the public transit system to curtail the spread
of the disease.

TransLink and its family of companies have been in on discussions with
the BC Centre for Disease Control, Vancouver Coastal Health and Fraser
Health since before the WHO declared an H1N1 pandemic this past spring.
Following the declaration of the pandemic, the Public Health Agency of
Canada (federal) has also been involved in these discussions. The
advice we have received from these health professionals is that
extraordinary measures such as installing hand sanitizers on transit
vehicles, increasing the frequency of sanitization efforts or
distributing face masks to employees, are not needed at this time.

Sanitizing grab bars, stanchions and seats is only effective until the
next contagious person comes along and touches them. None of that can
defend against airborne contamination through sneezing or coughing.
According to the BC Centre for Disease Control, it is more important for
people to wash their hands regularly especially before they eat and to
avoid touching their face, eyes and nose.

Health authorities do not recommend handing out face masks to the
workforce - in fact, they say if not properly used, they can actually
increase the risk. At TransLink, our Access Transit workers - HandyDART
drivers, for example - do use the masks, because they're transporting
people who often have health concerns as they go to healthcare
appointments, so the masks help prevent making their health concern
worse; the Access Transit workers are trained in their proper use.

We strongly encourage our employees to stay home if they show signs of
the flu, and we rely on the usual 'common sense' approach to preventing
the spread of germs: wash hands frequently, using plain soap and warm
water - and keep your hands under the water for at least 20 seconds ...
cough or sneeze into your elbow or sleeve - not your hand."

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they like kicking people off the bus in victoria

BY JUDITH LAVOIE, TIMES COLONISTSEPTEMBER 25, 2009

Crying toddler kicked off Victoria bus

An Oak Bay mother says she's not happy with B.C. Transit's response to a recent incident where she and her 20-month-old daughter were forced off a bus by the driver because the child was making too much noise.

Jenny Manzer says she wants to ensure no other parent faces a similar situation. "Their response really has been inadequate," said Manzer, who says she received a form letter and four free bus tickets. "I find that really insulting. I don't think they have taken it seriously enough."

But transit spokeswoman Joanna Morton said the incident is being taken seriously -- Manzer has received an apology and the driver is being monitored.

Manzer and her daughter, Briar Leach, were travelling from the University of Victoria to downtown Sept. 11 when Briar started to fuss. "She was just saying 'no, no, no, no.' It was loud and annoying, but she stayed in her seat and I was doing everything I could to calm her down," Manzer said.

But the bus driver pulled up at the busy Lansdowne-Foul Bay intersection and demanded that Manzer leave the bus because the noise was affecting his driving. Manzer said she had no stroller and three bags and would have to carry Briar a considerable distance to get home.

"I appealed to stay because it was not a safe situation to get off the bus with her, and he said he didn't care and I would have to learn to control her."

Despite support for Manzer from other passengers, the bus driver would not relent, and Manzer was left struggling with bags and Briar on the street.

Manzer, a journalist, called the experience "dangerous, upsetting and humiliating."

She and partner David Leach, a professor at the University of Victoria, do not own a car and usually transport Briar and her brother AJ by bike and bus. Now, because of this experience, they're now wondering whether they should buy a vehicle.

Manzer, who e-mailed B.C. Transit immediately after the incident, said the majority of B.C. Transit drivers are "fantastic." "That's why this experience left me so stunned."

Morton said as soon as the complaint was received, B.C. Transit called Manzer and interviewed the bus driver. "We apologized and explained this was not the norm and we offered a few passes as a gesture for the frustration," she said, adding the driver will continue to be monitored.

Morton did not have numbers available showing how many people a year are asked to leave buses in Greater Victoria. Manzer said she believes it is rare.

"I've ridden buses with inebriated people, riders with loud headphones, people swearing or making racial slurs, carrying jugs of liquor and even stripping down to their panties and changing clothes. None of these customers was asked to leave the bus," she said.

jlavoie@tc.canwest.com

© Copyright (c) The Victoria Times Colonist