Edmonton parents feel public transit isn’t safe for children: survey

Some parents feel Edmonton Transit isn’t safe for children and young people, according to two surveys done by the Edmonton Transit Service Advisory Board, which shared the results with the city council’s urban planning committee on Tuesday.

The surveys found young people felt substantially unsafe while riding transit, especially if they were riding alone. Parents and guardians say while transit is convenient, it is perceived as very unsafe for young people and children, and do not feel that ETS is doing a good job of keeping them safe.

The survey also found little trust exists between parents and the ETS.

Some feedback from parents in the survey included: “I refuse to send my child on ETS from all the horror stories from other parents and kids. Instead, we made up a carpool and a parent for every child shares driving duties.”

Another parent saying: “Out of the last five times I’ve been on the LRT I was in an altercation of some sort three times. My youngest won’t go to Millwoods Transit Centre because he doesn’t want to get stabbed.”

The survey also revealed transit is seen as a last resort, rather than a viable option for everyday commutes. Another big concern was the uncertainty as to who to approach when in need of help. The lack of visible security was also a major concern.

Michelle Peters-Jones is the vice-chair for the ETSAB, and primarily uses public transit to get around Edmonton. She hopes discussions with the urban planning committee can help find solutions to get more young Edmontonians to make transit a part of their everyday lives, similar to her daughter, who began using transit independently when she was eleven years old.

“I’m a parent, I worry, that’s natural,” she says. “But I also don’t want to take away her independence by making her feel unsafe, so I believe that’s where we really need to address that perception of safety because if we keep telling our children that they will be unsafe on public services, they will feel unsafe.

“Because that’s where they get it from, us, their parents. So I do believe parents should encourage their kids to be more independent and go out on transit. It doesn’t mean that they will always be unsafe, but it’s important to clear that perception of safety.”

According to a city report, youth accounted for nearly half of the fare revenue in Edmonton last year. ETSAB say the younger a youth begins using transit, the more likely they are to use it as an adult.

ETSAB made some recommendations to Edmonton’s Urban Planning Committee, to make transit more desirable for young people. They hope to see:

• Lighting at bus stops to be improved, especially during winter months
• A safety course from the ETS for younger riders
• Significant improvements to the Transit Watch service
• Step-by-step instructions on transit safety and what to do in case of safety issues
  (and more)

RELATED:

• Edmonton city council renewing transit community outreach program
• Edmonton Transit crime increased in 2022: police report

The City of Edmonton has a Transit Watch program where transit users can report safety concerns, like harassment, disorder, or suspicious behaviour by calling or texting the Transit Watch number (780-4420-4900).

ETSAB says many parents and young people are unaware of the number for Transit Watch. One respondent says they were dissatisfied with how Transit Watch responded to a call. ETSAB hopes to see some changes with the program, including:

• Have the Transit Watch number visibly posted in each ETS bus and on the bus stops
• Improve Transit Watch response times so riders trust it, and use it more often
• Introduce a mobile phone app that helps track safety issues in real-time

Peters-Jones says it’s important to improve the perception of safety and says awareness and education alone can do just that.

“There’s a lot of people who take transit without any issues, but people always focus on what goes wrong with transit, so by improving the perception of safety for young people and transit, then parents and guardians will feel more encouraged to send more of their children out on transit, foster a real sense of independence. And by attracting them young, you’re creating riders for life.”

Edmonton City Councillor, Tim Cartmell wants to see more short-term solutions.

“Lots of these things are great in the long term, but I’m really worried about how we get short-term recovery and overcome the cynicism and the fear that a lot of people have about our system,” he says. “People have a deep-seated fear of what might happen on the transit system, even if it is one occasion.”

City Administration is taking steps this year to address safety issues through the city’s safety transit plan. They plan to add QR codes to their Transit Watch program.

City councils urban planning committee has asked the administration for a progress report on the transit safety plan in June.