More Drug Busts among City Bus Drivers

(Acapulco, El Sur 1 March) In its continuing effort to rein in the almost out-of-control behavior of some city bus drivers, the traffic police erected another surprise check point yesterday on a well-traveled urban corridor. In the space of an hour or so the roadblock looked over 20 city buses in the area of La Cima (a working class neighborhood high on the ridge above Acapulco) and Boulevar Vicente Guerrero (a main thoroughfare along that ridge line).

Of the 20 buses checked out, four drivers were arrested for marijuana possession and one for bringing along an illegal assistant/co-pilot (known locally as a “chalán”). Two of the four arrested for drug possession were also underage. In other words, 20% of the drivers examined were carrying marijuana on them while at work. The sample is not random, so it is incorrect to extrapolate to all buses in Acapulco, and it says more about the intelligence of young drivers than it does about pot usage.

The good news is that apparently all 20 buses were in compliance with the requirement to have a license plate and documentation of the vehicle and driver. All 20 apparently were also abiding by the law against excessively loud speakers and horns. That indicates that the city’s campaign to bring buses into legal compliance is slowly having its effect.