Carry on bus illegal?

[fprintf]

I ride the bus occasionally into Hartford from the 'burbs. While riding one day, reading my American Rifleman magazine, I struck up a conversation with the driver. He is apparently a shooter, noticed my NRA magazine, and we got talking about shooting in general, and then concealed carry particularly. He said that he does not carry on the bus because it is against federal law for either him or any of the passengers to carry a loaded handgun on a bus.

Is there a federal prohibition against carrying on a bus? This is not interstate transportation here, so I am curious why it would be a federal jurisdiction, except that this is a type of bus that often goes out of state (not one of the CT Transit local ones). So perhaps it is CT law? I didn't see anything specific to CT in the stickied links, but maybe I missed it.

 

[glide]

It's probably just illegal for employees.

The MBTA in Mass is like that. Civilians can carry, employees cannot.

 

[buketduder]

Like Peter Pan?? There is nothing in CT Law about that at all...it is certainly not Federal Law....

 

[Palladin]

He's incorrect..that only applies to INTERSTATE travel, intrastate is governed by the state or commonwealth, not the Feds.

 

[fprintf]

Thanks all! I did find that interstate travel by bus has rules, http://www.nraila.org/GunLaws/Federal/Read.aspx?id=59 (down under other carriers). In reading other forums it seems the bus companies generally refuse to carry firearms, e.g. you can't "deliver the firearm to the driver" for the duration of the trip.

I'm not going to say or do anything differently, that is I am not going to start carrying to Hartford, it is just good to know that if I happened aboard the bus carrying concealed that I wouldn't be breaking any laws.

 

[Jose]

that is I am not going to start carrying to Hartford

Why not?

 

[fprintf]

Why not?

I am not going to carry because my destination in Hartford is my office, which has a strict "no weapons" policy. While no one would likely find it wherever it might be (holstered or in briefcase), I can't take the chance that someone discovers it by accident and then I am in trouble with the law *and* I lose my job.

 

[dcmdon]

fprint,
You need to understand a couple of things. We were all new at this at one time.

1) bringing a gun to work in a briefcase is not a good idea, even if your employer does not have a strict "non-violent" workplace policy. It is your ethical responsibility to keep your gun under your control at all times. That means it needs to be on your person if you are at work. Or unless you have a safe at your desk.

2) There is a difference between a strict weapons policy for employees and a ban on firearms on their property. Any property owner can choose to not allow armed people on their property. But if an employer has an anti-firearm policy and you choose to carry, you are putting your job at risk. However, you are not breaking the law.

Let me put it this way. I worked for a city a few years ago. I carried every day. We had a strict no guns in the workplace policy. But guns were not banned from city buildings. I was breaking policy and could have been fired had I been found out. However, I was not breaking any law.

Its important that you pay attention to the difference between those two situations.

Bottom line is that you can pretty much carry anywhere you want in CT. Stay out of schools, the state capitol and federal facilities. Done.

 

[fprintf]

dcmdon, thanks for that supportive information. That is really good to know!