LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- A Louisville bus driver was shot while on the job last week, leading her to stand before the TARC board of directors Tuesday and ask why her supervisors went to the scene but not to the hospital to check on her.
Carrie Butler, executive director of TARC, said in an email to staff Tuesday that gunfire was exchanged between two nearby vehicles near the bus stop on West Woodlawn Avenue between South 2nd Street and Southern Parkway. She said a stray bullet went through the bus and hit the driver, Jerricka Girdon, in the leg. Butler said Girdon was treated at University of Louisville Hospital and released the same evening.
"I know how scary and unsettling an incident like this is," she wrote. "I wanted to send a note so everyone hears directly from me about what happened."
Girdon spoke before the TARC board of directors Tuesday at its monthly meeting. She said except for a handful of text messages the next day, no one from TARC checked in on her.
"I was notified that safety and road supervisors went to the scene, but where was my TARC family? None of my TARC family came up there to see me," Gidron said of her time at UofL Hospital. "I just felt like I was by myself."
A TARC Board of Directors meeting on May 23, 2023. (WDRB Photo)
Lillian Brents, president of the Transit Union Local 1447, which represents TARC employees, said that revelation made her sick to her stomach.
"When you work a job, you work 40-50 hours a week just so you can pay the rent," Brents said Tuesday. "And when you give that much time in any relationship, you would think that they care enough about you to show up for you. And to hear that nobody shows up, that's disheartening. ... We should have a bigger expectation for each other as human beings."
Brents said Louisville's bus drivers aren't safe in an increasingly more violent city. She wants to see more done.
"We cannot predict the actions taken against bus drivers," Brents said. "However, we can predict on how we respond. TARC is not responding."
She said safety is a top concern for drivers and believes it's a big reason why drivers are leaving the business.
"If the employer doesn't make it a priority, then public and private transit in the city of Louisville is going to die," Brents said.
Butler said TARC is "in contact with the Mayor's office to identify ongoing and new anti-violence initiatives that we can participate in." She also said their safety department will increase efforts.
"The (gun violence) problem, as we’ve sadly seen recently, is widespread," Butler wrote. "It will take more than one city, let alone one agency, to solve. It is as sad and frustrating for me as I’m sure it is for you."
Gidron challenged TARC to take a look at how it handled Friday's shooting and whether that was sufficient if it were to happen again.
"How would y'all handle another situation like that?" she said. "You can't babysit the bus all the time."
TARC wouldn't comment further on specifics, citing the ongoing investigation. But Butler did add in a written statement:
"TARC believes it is important in these cases for the extended TARC team and supporters to hear directly from me to know what happened and to know that we will support this individual as they recover. The safety and security of our staff and the community who depend on us and the service we provide is always a top priority for everyone in our agency—this includes on the street where our Coach Operators work every day. We will continue to do what we can to ensure the safety of our team and the city of Louisville."
And as if this writing, LMPD hasn't made an arrest in the shooting.
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