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A Remarkable Career
William H. "Pop" Saunders (1921-1993) was one of six Metrobus drivers selected to become supervisors of Metro train drivers in 1974. But his 32-year career had begun in 1946 when Capital Transit hired him as a laborer, the only job at the company then open to African Americans. In 1955, the transit system bowed to political pressure and began to employ African Americans as drivers. A year later, Saunders was driving a streetcar.
When streetcars were replaced by buses in 1962, he made the transition as well. His record earned him a place in the first group trained to supervise Metro train operators in 1974, and he took the throttle for the first ceremonial VIP ride a year later. Saunders retired in 1978. |