Despite D.C.Circulator operators flagging dozens of safety defects on Circulator buses and pressuring the Bowser administration to release a damning audit of the system, District Department of Transportation (DDOT) contractor First Transit continued to put defective buses into service anyway, said ATU Local 1764 on Friday, adding that the company threatened to fire workers who refused to drive unsafe buses. After a morning press conference and testimony at the D.C. Council DDOT oversight hearing from Local 1764, the union representing the Circulator workers, and the Washington Interfaith Network, Council members Jack Evans and Mary Cheh condemned the convoluted management structure, substandard wages, and safety shortcuts that the union says have become commonplace at the Circulator. "Mayor Bowser's administration is playing a dangerous game here," said ATU Local 1764 Trustee Sesil Rubain. "They knew these buses were not fit to ride or drive in August, and they kept the DC Council, the union, and the public in the dark." ATU Local 1764 is currently in collective bargaining negotiations with First Transit and has made rider safety and fair wages for drivers top priorities. Read more here on WTOP. photo courtesy ATU 1764 Facebook
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