Union leader optimistic that King County will tackle violence, homelessness on transit

A transit union president says “everyone recognizes the problem” of safety on King County Metro transit and he’s hoping a task force will be able to help fix it.

Appearing on “The Gee and Ursula Show” on KIRO Newsradio, Greg Woodfield, president of the Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) Local 587, said everyone “wants to get in a room and start coming up with solutions.” He expressed optimism about the task force’s potential to implement meaningful changes.

“I’ve been here 26 years, and I’ve never seen the community come together like this,” he said. “Politicians from local to federal levels are saying that money isn’t an object and that we have to work together and do better.”

Violence, drug use, homelessness on King County Metro buses

The task force, announced at a press conference last week, is set to hold its first meeting on March 20 at the Boeing International Machinists 751 Union Hall in Seattle.

“We had some county council members here, some mayors, including Mayor Harrell, and staff from our senators and congress people,” Woodfield said.

Despite past experiences with task forces that yielded few results, Woodfield remains hopeful.

“We can make a difference, and we need to,” he emphasized. “Our transit workers are going to say this is just a bunch of talk, but we are going to hold them accountable to their words. If we don’t get anything out of it, we’re not going to stop until we get more safety for our transit workers and passengers.”

The interview also touched on the broader safety issues affecting King County Metro.

“The amount of violence, drug use, homelessness, and mental health issues has gone up too far,” Woodfield noted. “We used to be able to do something about it, but now nobody is held accountable for their behavior.”

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Other commitments for King County Metro transit

Woodfield highlighted recent commitments from the county, including $21 million to retrofit the fleet with barriers and the addition of 10 more Metro Transit police officers.

“I really believe that we’ll get something out of this, but we’re going to hold them accountable,” he said.

The discussion also addressed the impact of safety concerns on transit employees and the community. He said, “It’s starting to get harder to hire transit employees. Maybe their spouses or loved ones aren’t down with them taking a job where they see people shot and killed on the news.”

The interview also highlighted the community’s growing concern over safety on public transit.

“We’ve had listeners text in to us, telling us how they have stopped their spouses from riding because it has gotten really bad,” host Gee Scott noted. “It has gotten extreme, and you say you’ve been there 26 years. I think you will even agree that it’s gotten bad since the time you’ve been there.”

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Transit has a need for ‘collective action’

Woodfield agreed, emphasizing the need for collective action.

“We have thousands of trips every day where people get on the bus or the train or the streetcar and have good, safe experiences,” he said.

Woodfield also addressed the challenges of restoring suspended routes and hiring new employees. But the union president expressed his commitment to ensuring the safety of both transit workers and passengers.

“We don’t want to cut off a community that needs transit,” he said. “But if we get back to where we were, we’re going to be allowed to say we need to shut it down. Those zones should be open, but they should provide enough city and county policing to keep that area safe.”

Listen to “The Gee and Ursula Show” weekday mornings from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. on KIRO Newsradio.