GO Transit buses have been involved in almost 900 collisions since 2014, and the agency’s bus drivers were at fault for nearly half of them. According to figures provided by Metrolinx, the provincial organization in charge of GO, the service recorded 897 crashes between April 2014 and March of this year.Of those, 46.5 per cent were deemed “preventable,” a term Metrolinx uses to describe a collision that the bus driver “failed to do everything reasonable and possible” to avoid.GO’s rate of preventable crashes is higher than that of the TTC, which has determined that its operators are at fault for about one quarter of collisions involving its buses and streetcars.Metrolinx and the TTC each conduct their own investigations into crashes, and Metrolinx spokesperson Anne Marie Aikins said she couldn’t say why GO had a higher rate of preventable collisions, or how the TTC’s methodology might differ from that of her agency.But she said “safety of our passengers, our staff and the public is always our first priority” and the agency’s goal “is to operate a safe, comfortable transit service and ensure our drivers are well trained and experienced professionals.” The union that represents GO bus drivers did not a request for comment Thursday evening.According to Aikins, before they get behind the wheel, GO’s roughly 870 bus drivers undergo “rigorous” safety training that exceeds Ministry of Transportation standards. It includes a seven-week course that drivers must complete before they start duty and recurring training every three years after that. Drivers who are involved in a preventable collision, fall below agency standards, or are returning from an extended absence may also have to take refresher courses. The figures provided by Metrolinx show that the number of annual GO bus crashes is on the rise. There were 313 collisions recorded over the course of the age ...
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