Security of Public Transport in the United States Chief Michael Taborn Metro Transit Police Department January 28, 2011 Metro Transit Police Department 1

Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) WMATA Overview WMATA created in 1967 Serves a population of 3.4 million within a 1,500 square miles Second largest rail system and seventh largest bus network in the United States 2

Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) Metrobus 24 hours a day 350 routes/12,000+ bus stops 1,479 buses Metrorail 86 stations, 106 miles of track 1,116 rail cars Metro Access Begin in M trips per year 450 vans and sedans 3

Sustainability WMATA’s operations: – Removes more than 500,00 cars off the road each weekday – Eliminates more than 10,000 tons of pollutants from the air annually – Saves 75 million gallons of gas annually Entire Metrobus fleet is Eco-Friendly Metrobus and Metrorail accommodates bicycle and bicycle storage at Metro facilities A car-sharing program is available at 41 stations Extensive recycle programming Continual exploration of energy saving technologies More than 1.2M trips per day between bus and rail 4

Livability Transit Police support livability and sustainable communities through:  Public Safety/Outreaches  System Security  First Response  Emergency Management 5

WMATA is a critical national asset On a daily basis during peak ridership, WMATA transports more than 40% of the Federal Government employees to and from work Metro Transit Police Department 6

Federal Facilities  ½ of all rail stations located near a federal facility  Federal employees = over 40% of peak ridership  375,000 civilian and military employees in region Federal Government and WMATA 7

Metro Transit Police Department (MTPD) MTPD Overview 450 Sworn officers, 127 Special Police Officer`s, 24 civilians Jurisdiction and arrest powers throughout the 1,500 square mile transit zone 6 Bureaus o Executive Office of the Chief o Administrative Services Bureau o Patrol Operations Bureau o Special Operations Bureau o Office of Emergency Management o Homeland Security Investigations and Intelligence Bureau 8

Information Sharing The National Capital Region’s key to success is information sharing with not only law enforcement entities in the NCR, but with our Federal partners as well o Department of Homeland Security (DHS) o Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) o Federal Transportation Administration (FTA) o Department of Defense (DOD) o Transportation Security Administration (TSA) 9

Crime within WMATA MTPD developed MetroStat – similar to COMSTAT used by other law enforcement agencies Probability of being the victim of a crime less than 5.73 per million riders Crime against person Minor assaults Assaults on employees Robbery (snatches and pickpocket) Crime against property Theft from auto Theft of auto Vandalism to auto 10

Strategies to Improving Security An effective organizational Safety and Security culture Employee training Mass communication to all employees through a variety of internal mechanisms Public awareness and outreach Emergency Preparedness Passenger Information Display Systems (PIDS) Local and regional drills with key stakeholders 11

Threats and Vulnerability Most public transportation systems throughout the world are “open-systems” Office of Domestic Preparedness (ODP) conducted a Threat and Vulnerability Assessment (TVA) in 2004 Mass transit must remain vigilant Soft target Large crowds Limited resources Proximity to public and federal places of interest 12

MTPD Resources and Capabilities Anti-Terrorism Team Canine Unit Explosive Ordinance Disposal Local Joint Terrorism Task Force National Joint Terrorism Task Force Special Response Team Office of Emergency Management Random Bag Inspection Points 13

Anti-Terrorism Initiatives Operation Blue Tide Operation RAIL SAFE Chemical detection program Bio-Watch program Target-Train Inspections (TTI) Portable radiological pagers Explosive containment trash cans Relentless outreach/public awareness License plate readers Annual training for all employees Regional drills and exercises 14

Office of Emergency Management Mission Provides emergency response, recovery, mitigation, and prevention expertise for WMATA What we do… Planning Response and Recovery Special Projects Training and Outreach

Looking Forward Regional drills and exercises Continued collaboration in the National Capital Region (NCR) Ongoing partnership with the Council of Governments (COG) Continued partnership with local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies 16

Metro Transit Police Chief Michael Taborn (202) Metro Transit Police Department Communications (202) Emergency intercom buttons On the end of every rail car On pylons on platforms Any Metro employee 17