Shattered glass could leave Transit users, homeless Winnipeggers exposed to the cold

A wave of vandalism tobus shelters and difficulty getting replacement glass means some Winnipeg Transit users could be left unprotectedas cold weather starts blowing in.

For some,that will be an uncomfortable inconvenience, but for others it could mean the difference between life and death, saidKate Kehler, executive director of the Social Planning Council of Winnipeg.

"The biggest worry isthat people are going to die because they don't feel that they're safe in other places, and they will stay outside rather than go to where they don't feel safe," she said.

Groups that work around homelessness say many people choose transit shelters because they're afraid of catching COVID-19 or experiencing violence incrowded homeless shelters,or have a cartload of belongings they aren't allowed to bring in.

Othershave addictions that prevent them from being accepted at a shelter, or are looking for place that offers a bit of privacy, butis still public enough to feel safe.

"What will people do? We willhave to see," said Kehler. "But what the bus shelter situationdemonstrates is that no matter what, people want to practise their autonomy."

City of Winnipeg spokesperson Alissa Clark said there has been an "unusually high rate of bus shelter vandalism" this year,affectingmore than a third of the shelters across the city.

In the majority of cases, glass walls have been shattered,leaving many shelters as metal frames with nothing to block the wind.

"Because of the sheer number of replacement glass panes we have been required to order and ongoing supply chain issues, our supplier is having difficulty fulfilling our orders in a timely manner," Clark said in an email to CBC News.

Transit users with the luxury of choice will likely take their carsrather than stand in the cold for a bus, "which is not a good decision for our city and for our environment," Kehler said.

But many other riders are low-income people for whom buses are themain mode of transportation.

"They're stuck. They are actually going to be cold [and] that just makes their life that much more difficult," she said.

"It's not fair that they are made to suffer more as the colder weather comes in."

Winnipeg Transit has 880 shelters. Of those,298 were vandalized this year78heated and 220unheated.

"Transit's repair team is on the street every day, completing repairs as quickly as possible," Clarkwrote.

"Currently we have 51 heated shelters needing glass repairs. Some of these shelters require more than one pane of glass repaired or replaced."

In a typical year, the city spends approximately $150,000 on vandalism related to bus shelters. So far this year, the costis in excess of $362,500.

"A rough estimate of repair costs to year end if this level of vandalism keeps up is another $230,000," said Winnipeg Transit spokesperson Megan Benedictson.

Benedictsonsaid crews areprioritizing repairs to those shelters on highly used routes first, and aim to repair all by year's end "depending on future damage volumes."

Kehlerblames an overall lack of investment in public transit for the situation the city is in now.

"If this was a priority those repairs would [have been done already]. This is not a new situation. This isn't just this past yearthere are always transit shelters that need repair for any number of different reasons, and they're just behind."

Kehler is aware some peopleblame thoseliving in the shelters for causing the damage, but shedoubts that's the case.

"Why would you vandalize what's providing you shelter? I don't believe they're the ones doing the damage, but I can't prove that in any way, shape or form," she said.

But she's worried the situation will spark ill will that waskindled earlier this year when a city councillor proposed partially dismantling two bus shelters on Regent Avenue, over concerns aboutpeople livingand abusing substances in them.

After opposition from advocates for the city's homeless population, Transcona Coun. Shawn Nasonbackedoff that idea, sayinghe would instead supportlonger-term approaches, and city council didn't move forward with the plan.

"I'm very concerned about the rhetoric of some of the politicians around this issue," Kehler said.

"We don't support this idea that there are somehow legitimate bus shelter users and illegitimate ones. It's a shelter and people need to be able to use it for shelter."

Kehler is calling on the city to implement itscold weather strategy offering warming spaces in libraries and other civic facilitiessooner this winter than it normally does.

"They need to not wait for it to be 40 C but to actually be prepared at all times to kind of step in. Yes, it's going to cost the city money because they're going to have to pay staff to be there," she said.

"But this is the cost that we have to face because we have not done what we needed to do to address homelessness. Do we want them freezing to death in our bus shelters? No, we do not, so we [should] provide as many alternatives as necessary."