Driving for Muni can be a stressful gig. With all the rider beatings, collisions, and allegations of discrimination, the brown-uniform-sporting employees have a lot to deal with even before it comes to matters of their own safety. Yet they must deal with that as well, as the Examiner reports one driver alleges she assaulted Saturday by a passing motorist.
The driver, 32-year-old Carla Romero, told the paper that she was attacked by a man in his 50's after he passed by her bus. According to Romero it wasn't even a passenger — a person got out of his car and assaulted her. Here's how she says it went down: At roughly 9:00 a.m. Romero got a call to bring the bus she was driving back to the yard. She then pulled over on Third Street in SoMa so she could switch trolley poles in order to change direction on the bus. It was at that time that the rage-filled driver reportedly passed her bus, stopped in front of it, got out his car, charged at her, and threw her to the ground.
“He put his hands on me, he pushed me back,” she told the paper. “I’m not sure if he punched me, but I threw a punch.”
“I freaked out,” she continued. “I felt like he was going to keep coming at me.”
Now, it should be noted that at this point all we have is Romero's version of events — we reached out to SFMTA spokesperson Paul Rose for confirmation but have received no response as of press time. That being said, when Romero showed up to speak with Examiner reporter Joe Fitzgerald Rodriguez, "she had scratches on her face and lumps on her head."
The man was kept at the scene by witnesses, and police have video from Romero's bus which may or may not show the attack. Although the alleged assault is over, Romero is not out of hot water yet — the man is pressing charges for assault.
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