When things don’t go well, Metro Transit’s operators and Transit Rider Investment Program agents aren’t alone.
After collisions, assaults, or other traumatic incidents, they can turn to a team of Peer Support counselors who use their experience and training to help them process these difficult moments. The confidential conversations supplement other free counseling services available to all staff.
The industry-leading Peer Support program started in 1993 and was recently revitalized with the addition of dedicated support staff focused on sustaining the work of those who sign up to be there for for their peers.
“Having a dedicated program with peers who have been trained to provide support and be there to listen and give them resources is so important for operators’ mental health and to keep them in our organization,” said Dr. Trisha Hopkins-Smith, who came on as Peer Support’s program manager in 2025.
To prepare, Peer Support counselors completed five days of training about psychological first aid, understanding trauma and how it shows up in different people differently, and how to support them.
Operator Brandon Holland is among the 25 operators, dispatchers, and TRIP agents who completed that training and is now serving as a Peer Support counselor.
When he talks to people after an incident, his mission is to get them to avoid dwelling on what they could have done differently.
“We try to get them away from that and focus on what they did right,” Holland said. “That negativity will pull you down.”
Operator Rhonda Williams, who has provided peer-to-peer support for several years, also said it was important for people to understand they often have little or no control over others’ behaviors.
“A lot of times, people have had a rough route where they’ve been called names for no reason or missed someone’s stop even though they didn’t ring the bell,” she said. “It’s nice to talk with someone to know that person was mad but not particularly at you…We sit with them and make sure they write out the report. We comfort them. You don’t want them to bring that home to their loved ones.”
Peer Support is currently available to bus and train operators and TRIP agents, who frequently interact with the public. The program may in the future expand to other work groups.
Dedicating staff to the Peer Support program is among 40+ actions identified in the Safety & Security Action Plan, which focuses on three areas of work, including training and supporting employees.