Public transit is a must in any city- no human person should need to own a car in order to access healthcare, government offices, or just running to the mall for fun.
That said, the Murfreesboro Transit system, which is a local government, taxpayer-funded org, is failing the community and its employees (who are also community members).
We recently invested in new buses (which are technically shuttles), and one of the many issues is the driver seat. In addition to it being a downgrade ergonomically from our last buses, the adjustment lever was poorly manufactured, there was even a break on day one back in May. So, drivers are expected to work 5-12 hour shifts sitting in chairs they cannot adjust- it’s unacceptable, and causing health and safety issues daily. The person in charge, Russ Brashear, is aware of the issue, and so far unwilling to ensure that drivers are at least placed in a bus with a working lever on a daily basis. I personally am experiencing back issues already, and there are complaints from other drivers about the issue, as well.
It seems that emails really do help, even as the folks in charge of the system are not welcoming of employee feedback via that avenue, but at least one email has lead to one good change related to accessibility in the last year. Please send an email to Russ at rbrashear@murfreesborotn.gov to let him know that drivers deserve better.
Thank you.