DOT makes safety upgrades to New Britain CT Fastrak station
The state Department of Transportation (CT DOT) announced safety upgrades to the CT Fastrak station in downtown New Britain.
State police said there have been 900 incidents across all the CT Fastrak stations over the past year, including assaults, domestic disturbances, medical calls, and drug deals.
“You see people getting high, using drugs, soliciting for money, that kind of stuff; that’s the norm down here,” Tom Roscoe, a bus passenger, said.
That’s why CT DOT is redesigning the waiting shelters so police can better see who’s sitting there.
They also added new lights and beefed up security by hiring a new company, PalAmerican Security, that will have two security officers watching the station every shift.
That effort is supported by more state police that will patrol the entire CT Fastrak line that runs from Bristol to West Hartford.
“There is a zero-tolerance enforcement initiative that is ongoing right now on the New Britain Fastrak,” Ronnell Higgins, CT Dept. of Emergency Services and Public Protection commissioner, said.
Drivers are also protected with a barrier in front of their seat, indoor bus cameras, and an SOS button that contacts authorities.
“We really teach the drivers to de-escalate the situation,” CT DOT Commissioner Garrett Eucalitto said. “We don’t want those bus operators putting themselves any more at risk. They are in a very risky job as it is.”
CT DOT is also working to ban repeat offenders from taking the bus and visiting the station.
“The people of Connecticut and the people between New Britain and Hartford, they depend on reliable, safe transportation and this is it for them,” State Police Col. Daniel Loughman said.
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