The Winnipeg Transport Union has raised concerns about violence after a bus driver pulled a gun on him.

The executive vice-president of the Winnipeg Transport Workers Union is raising concerns about an increase in violent incidents on buses after an operator was allegedly pointed at by a gun early Friday morning in front of police headquarters.

According to Derek Hanley of the Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) Local 1505, around 12:30 p.m., the bus driver picked up a group of passengers along his route toward Graham Avenue in the downtown area.

Hanley said when the cameraman turned onto Graham Avenue, the group got into a fight. The driver told him that one man pulled out a gun and started pointing it at other passengers, then ran to the front of the bus and pointed it at the driver.

“He pointed the gun at the shield and said, ‘Let me off the bus right here.’ It was right in front of the police building,” Hanley recalls the driver saying.

After being released from the bus, the man ran toward Portage Avenue, the operator said.

“He couldn’t believe how quickly it happened and what just happened,” Hanley said.

“He was just hoping, ‘Please don’t shoot me.’

Hanley said the driver was shaken up after the incident and was planning to take time off from work.

While Hanley said the number of reported incidents has decreased this year compared to the same period last year, the severity of the incidents is worsening.

“Acts of violence in transit are increasing,” he said. “It’s like the Wild West. Everyone seems to be armed.”

Hanley also said that most people who commit crimes on public transport do not pay the fare.

“When they don’t pay the fare, they feel empowered,” he said.

Hanley also pointed to another incident earlier this week in which an operator picked up a man in distress, who then chased the driver out of a bus window.

“These are daily events that happen on buses,” he said.

When it comes to solving this problem, Hanley said there needs to be better enforcement and a way for drivers to report crimes in real time.

“There are a lot of different technologies that can be used to commit crimes like this,” Hanley said, pointing to Toronto’s SafeTTC app, where passengers can anonymously report crimes. “We’re actually looking at bringing it here to Winnipeg, but like everything else, it costs money.”

Hanley also pointed to Winnipeg Transit’s fare education campaign, but said more needs to be done.

“This is not a free service. To use this service you will have to pay. But with that comes enforcement,” he said.

No arrests were made in Friday’s incident. Winnipeg police are investigating.