Report: Angry Metrobus Rider Punches Driver In Face, Breaks Her Tooth

ALEXANDRIA, Va. (WJZ) -- A Virginia bus rider, upset after missing his bus, used DC Metro to catch up with the bus, then allegedly punched the driver in the face.

According to the Amalagamated Transit Union, the incident happened around 11 p.m. on April 25 at the Huntington Metro Station in Alexandria, Va.

The rider was furious after he missed the bus at the Braddock Rd. Metro station

According to the union report, the rider took the Yellow Line to catch up to the bus at the next station in Huntington. When he got on the bus, another rider tried to stop a fight from breaking out, but the suspect attacked that rider. He then allegedly punched the driver in the face and broke her tooth.

"Any attack on a Metro employee, whether it is an operator or maintenance that work on vehicles in the field, places everyone on the bus, and even the public around the buses in danger," Amalagamated Transit Union 689 second vice president, Raymond Jackson stated. "It has been almost a week since this incident and the leadership at Metro has done very little to inform the public that this happened. We find that unacceptable."

"A message needs to be sent to reassure the riding public and the transit workers that they can have a safe ride every time they take a bus or train in Maryland, D.C. or Virginia," added Jackson. "No one should get on a Metro bus and feel unsafe because Metro leadership is doing too little or the penalties are not effective. The bus shield on that bus did not save the operator or the rider that was attacked. We must pass new legislation and get serious about Metro safety, and we must do it now."

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