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![\"MIKAELA](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/4044460_web1_251231-Shatter-proof-shelters-00041.jpg\")
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MIKAELA MACKENZIE \/ FREE PRESS FILES<\/p>\n
By the end of 2026, more than 70 shelters will have their glass panels replaced with polycarbonate panel.<\/p>\n
In the fall, the city installed the polycarbonate material, which is 250 times more impact-resistant than safety glass, at 22 transit shelters in locations chosen based on high rates of vandalism.<\/p>\n
Of that number, the polycarbonate panels were left intact in 14 shelters, panels were popped out of place in six locations and one had its panels replaced after a motor vehicle collision. The panels survived the vehicle\u2019s impact but they were stolen before crews arrived.<\/p>\n
The 22nd pilot shelter is owned by Astral Media Outdoor and has not sustained any damage, Winnipeg Transit spokesperson Brandon Logan said.<\/p>\n
The material cost for polycarbonate per shelter is about $4,000 \u2014 about 15 per cent more than glass \u2014 but Lukes (Waverley West) said the initial cost is worth it when factoring in the cost of labour and replacement glass for damaged shelters.<\/p>\n
Because of the success of the pilot, the city also installed double-layered panels on all 24 of its display signs along the rapid transit system and the city is in the process of replacing the screens.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo now they won\u2019t be broken and they\u2019ll actually work,\u201d Lukes said.<\/p>\n
The city\u2019s long-term goal is to continue replacing the glass shelters with polycarbonate panels, Lukes said.<\/p>\n
The city installed the polycarbonate panels at \u201chigh-use\u201d bus stops but keeps their exact locations under wraps to prevent anyone from purposely testing their strength.<\/p>\n
Polycarbonate is used by several other Canadian transit systems. The city opted to test polycarbonate for its bus shelters, in part, due to the increasing frequency of replacing glass panels due to vandalism.<\/p>\n
The city spent $23,873.84 in 2025 to replace glass in bus shelters in 2025, way down from the $147,593.90 spent in 2024. Logan attributed the decrease in cost to Winnipeg Transit removing about 150 shelters from stops as part of the city\u2019s transit network overhaul.<\/p>\n
Glass from those shelters were put back into inventory for use in repairs.<\/p>\n
Of the shelters removed as part of the transit overhaul, 54 were deemed to be at the end of their useful lives and 37 were relocated to existing stops that previously did not have shelters. Fourteen of the shelters removed during will be moved to new stop locations, Logan said.<\/p>\n
Vandalism at bus shelters has grown in recent years, city data shows.<\/p>\n
Between Jan. 1 and Dec. 28, 2025 the city repaired 349 glass shelters \u2014 the second-highest number over the past five years. City data shows 267 bus shelters were impacted by broken glass in 2021, followed by 361 in 2022, 305 in 2023 and 237 in 2024.<\/p>\n
\n\t\tWinnipeg Free Press | Newsletter\n\t<\/p>\n
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As of Tuesday, 19 shelters across Winnipeg are still missing glass panels.<\/p>\n
Winnipeg Transit is also exploring the option of replacing its driver shields to partial or full enclosures made of the polycarbonate material, said Lukes, who is also a member of the city\u2019s transit advisory committee.<\/p>\n
James Van Gerwen, president of the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1505, was not available for comment Tuesday.<\/p>\n
The city has about 735 shelters across Winnipeg. Of those, 534 are owned and maintained by Winnipeg Transit and 60 are owned by Winnipeg Transit but maintained by other organizations. Astral, the city\u2019s advertising contractor, has approximately 141 shelters across the city that it maintains. Once the contract expires, ownership of the shelters is transferred to the city, Logan said.<\/p>\n
nicole.buffie@freepress.mb.ca<\/p>\n
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Nicole Buffie Nicole Buffie is a reporter for the Free Press city desk. Born and bred in Winnipeg, Nicole graduated from Red River College\u2019s Creative Communications program in 2020 and worked as a reporter throughout Manitoba before joining the Free Press newsroom as a multimedia producer in 2023. Read more about Nicole<\/a>.<\/p>\n Every piece of reporting Nicole produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print \u2014 part of the Free Press\u2018s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press\u2019s history and mandate<\/a>, and learn how our newsroom operates<\/a>.<\/p>\n
Multimedia producer
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