Scott Qazzaz’s quest to stay healthy and safe behind the wheel of a TriMet bus during the coronavirus pandemic led him an unlikely place last month: a Dollar Tree deep in the heart of Beaverton.

The 55-year-old long-time bus operator purchased about five transparent shower curtains at the discount store a few weeks back, the latest version in the personalized plastic protection system the self-described “mister fix-it gadget guy” had been tinkering with on his buses since early March.

Qazzaz, who said he’s worked for TriMet since 1994, went looking for a solution because he didn’t feel safe.

“Necessity is the mother of invention, and obviously we need to protect ourselves,” he said.

He’d tried plastic sheets from Home Depot and other shower curtains, but the $1 versions worked just right. He said he had the system dialed in.

He’d bring the plastic sheet on board wrapped up like a beach towel but ready to rock with bungee cords attached. He’d affix one side to the coat hook behind the driver’s seat and the other to the rear view mirror.

It took about a minute to install and take down, he said. Qazzaz said he never heard complaints from riders.

On Tuesday, TriMet officials told Qazzaz to remove it.

“I feel much more vulnerable without it,” he said.

TriMet officials confirmed the story and said that Qazzaz’s shower solution was not the answer.

“The shower curtain posed a serious safety concern as it could impair his ability to see to the side,” said Roberta Altstadt, a TriMet spokeswoman. “That could have led to a collision with an auto, pedestrian, bicyclist or a rider approaching the bus as it pulled away from a stop.”

She said a rider complained to TriMet about the curtain.

Qazzaz works at the Beaverton-based Merlo bus garage, the same place as the lone known TriMet worker to test positive for the virus.

TriMet has pledged to install plastic security barriers designed to prevent physical assaults on drivers on all of its more than 700 buses. As of today, half of the fleet have the barriers.

TriMet General Manager Doug Kelsey authorized a $2.7 million plan in March to speed up those installations. “We are quickly procuring panels and will retrofit the rest of our bus fleet by the end of July,” Altstadt said in an email.

Qazzaz said he rarely had a barrier and that led him to shop for a solution.

He said he’s disappointed the agency had him take down the shower curtain, which he said works better than the barrier, which doesn’t cover the entire area surrounding the driver.

TriMet began its drive to install the protective barriers last year in response to increased attacks on drivers.

Just last month, a TriMet bus driver was reportedly assaulted by a passenger who struck him around the barrier and spat, then yelled, “Now you have the corona.”

Qazzaz said he’s more concerned about the coronavirus than violence from passengers.

And he said he’s already been wearing his personal “gas mask” to protect himself from airborne particles, while bringing his own gloves, sanitizer and wipes to disinfect buses.

He credited TriMet for taking steps in the past week or two to distribute some face coverings to employees and increase other cleaning supplies, but he said it didn’t happen soon enough, that’s why he acted.

“I think we’re dropping the ball in terms of what we’re putting into practice immediately," Qazzaz said. “Again, timing is key. I wasn’t going to wait until next month.”

CORRECTION: An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated that TriMet’s board approved a $2.7 million expenditure. TriMet GM Doug Kelsey authorized the plan using existing contracts.

-- Andrew Theen; atheen@oregonian.com; 503-29-4026; @andrewtheen

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