A Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority bus operator was slain in a shooting Friday night in the parking lot of the Chaboya VTA bus yard in South San José.
“The Santa Clara Sheriff’s Office is investigating what appears to be an isolated incident,” stated VTA General Manager Carolyn Gonot during a press conference Saturday morning. The Santa Clara Sheriff’s Office had not announced any arrests or suspect details as of Saturday morning.
The VTA announced that it will step up security at all of its locations over the weekend and predicted no service issues.
Raj Singh, president of the amalgamated transit union, stated that the VTA and the union are working to address safety concerns but declined to comment. Singh stated that bus drivers are inherently more vulnerable due to their public exposure.
Singh told me, “The nature of the job—they open that door; they really don’t know who’s walking on.” The Chaboya bus yard does not serve as a bus stop.
Three years ago, a VTA employee shot and killed nine coworkers before killing himself at a VTA rail yard in downtown San José. Mental health services developed following the disaster are still available to VTA staff today, and Singh encouraged them to use them.
“The operators, especially, have their senses a little bit heightened, and they’re more concerned for their safety compared to some of the other workers that don’t deal with the public,” said Singh.
Workers can consult with both professional and peer counselors. Singh stated that personnel seeking assistance with this tragedy have “essentially unlimited” counseling sessions available. “There have been a lot of people utilizing the services.”
He further stated, “Everybody deals with traumatic events in their own way.”
