An 18-year-old was stabbed on a Saskatoon bus, police say

Saskatoon police are investigating an assault on a city bus after an 18-year-old man was stabbed on Wednesday afternoon.

At around 5:43 p.m., officers responded to a report of a stabbing on a city bus at the intersection 12th street East and Broadway Avenue, the Saskatoon Police Service said in a release.

Police said the suspect had fled the scene before officers got there.

“Arriving officers observed the victim being attended by Medavie Health Services and Saskatoon Fire,” police said.

The injured teen was taken to hospital and police believe he is recovering in “stable condition.”

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Last month, Saskatoon’s transit union came forward with complaints of escalating violence on city buses.

According to the president of the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 615, in recent months drivers have reported being punched, kicked and spat on while serving the public.

Bus riders have come forward with similar complaints as well.

In February, a Saskatoon woman said she was assaulted and robbed while waiting for the bus on her way home from work.

In a statement on Thursday, Saskatoon Transit acknowledged it has seen an increase in "negative interactions" on public transit.

The transit department has logged 124.5 negative interactions per one million rides so far this year, the statement said.

Of those interactions, 26 per cent were verbal altercations, nine per cent were acts of agression, and six per cent were assaults.

Saskatoon Transit says it takes all incidents of violence on the transit system very seriously.

“Since negative interactions began to rise, uniformed Saskatoon Transit supervisors have been riding on routes, which have greater frequency of negative interactions,” the statement said. “Last month, more than 100 supervisor ride-alongs were performed across the transit system.

The city says beginning on July 1, community support officers will be placed in targeted areas and on routes where incidents occur more frequently.

The “enhanced” community support program, formerly run by the downtown business improvement district, has been put in the hands of the Saskatoon Fire Department, the statement said.

Saskatoon Transit says commissionaires have been placed on increased patrol in the downtown terminal to align with bus arrivals, occasionally flanked by transit supervisors.

“Patrols have also been expanded to the Market Mall and Confederation Mall terminals.”

CTV News has contacted the transit union for comment and is waiting for a response.

-With files from Rory MacLean