Rider sought for allegedly firing at SEPTA bus following fare argument: police
PHILADELPHIA - No one was hurt when police say a passenger shot at a SEPTA bus following an argument over a fare charge early Friday morning in North Philadelphia.
Authorities say the shooting happened around 5:30 a.m. when the disgruntled passenger exited a Route 57 bus near Front and Luzerne streets.
The gunman allegedly fired one shot that struck the front windshield of the bus and fled the scene before police arrived.
"Once the bus got a block away from Front and Hunting Park, the man exited the bus and a shot was fired at the bus, striking the front windshield," said SEPTA Police Captain J. Kitt Walls.
The windshield of a Route 57 SEPTA bus is damaged after a suspect fired a single shot into it following an altercation with the bus driver.
The entire incident was captured on security cameras located inside the bus, according to police. They shared stills from that footage with the public Friday in hopes to identify the wanted man.
The early morning shooting is the latest in a series of violent crimes on SEPTA property, including a stabbing aboard a Route 60 bus a day earlier.
Violent crime that threatens workers and riders alike has been a point of emphasis during ongoing bargaining discussions between SEPTA and the worker's union TWU Local 234.
Police respond to SEPTA bus shooting in North Philadelphia (left). SEPTA Transit Police released image of the wanted shooter (right).
"Right now it's bad," said union president Brian Pollitt who vouched for intervention from the National Guard during a discussion with FOX 29's Jeff Cole.
Meanwhile, SEPTA argues that serious crimes have leveled off and begun to steadily drop. It says its police force has grown to 180 with 25 new officers and 18 more on the way.
Still, SEPTA ridership is only 60% of what it was before the coronavirus pandemic. Captain Walls admitted riders carrying - and sometimes using - firearms is a concern, but believes SEPTA is safe.
"Everyday we have to redeploy and readdress different areas, that's what we're doing and it's working out well," Wall said.