Public Transit Safety and Security
Since the terrorist attacks on the U.S. in 2001, the safety and security of public facilities, including public transportation, have taken on an increased urgency. Public transportation providers in the Washington, D.C. area are working to ensure safe, reliable transportation for their riders and safe working conditions for their employees. Some of the safety and security measures taken by area transit providers are listed below. Scroll down or choose a transit provider from the menu at left to find out more.
Watch CommuterPage.com for news and information about continuing efforts by the area's transit services to enhance safety and security. For links to more information about local and national public safety and emergency preparedness efforts, see Public Safety Links and Resources.
Alexandria DASH
 The Alexandria Transit Company (ATC) has made safety a top priority since the company began in 1984. However in light of the September 11th terrorist attacks on our nation, ATC has initiated several measures to increase the safety and security of the DASH system, its employees, and its customers. These enhancements will assist ATC in meeting its ultimate goal of Driving Alexandrians Safely Home (hence DASH).
The ATC management team quickly reacted to September 11th by reviewing all relevant safety and operating policies and procedures to all DASH employees. It launched a program called "Heightened Awareness Training."
The following is a brief description of old and new safety initiatives.
Heightened Awareness Training. A series of employee safety training meetings were held in October. Policies and procedures relating to passenger and vehicle safety and security were reviewed. Renewed emphasis was placed on the operator line inspection procedure that is conducted after each trip as a means of increasing security and safety aboard the bus.
Passenger Relations. Discussions were held with operators regarding the diversity of our customer base, passenger concerns, and the need to maintain flexibility and a courteous attitude as it relates to fare disputes or passenger altercations.
Visitor Policy. A new visitor policy was established to improve facility security before, during, and after normal business hours. A visitor log and visitor identification is maintained. All visitors must sign in and out.
Employee Policy. All employees have photo identification and are required to have it at all times.
Emergency Call List. This wallet-sized list contains important phone numbers for emergency personnel and key transit officials. It is given to all employees and updated regularly.
Safety Slogan. An interactive program that has met with success is a monthly safety slogan contest. The winning slogan is read on a daily basis by the dispatchers in the morning, afternoon, and evening.
Safety Board. This highly visible board is constantly being updated with news and tips on safety. It also displays the slogan of the month.
Safety Ride Checks. The Safety Coordinator and trainers periodically ride with operators to conduct safety ride checks and discuss safe driving practices and tips with the operators.
Safety and Accident Review Committee. This volunteer committee meets once a month to discuss accidents and other safety related issues. They also choose the winning slogan and come up with new monthly themes.
Smith System Professional Driving Course. This course is a prerequisite for all new operators before they can drive a DASH bus.
Refresher Training. Refresher training is also required of all operators every two years and for those involved in preventable accidents, on a case by case basis.
Safety Awareness Posters. Posters are displayed in prime locations at the facility. The posters reinforce pre-trip inspections, defensive driving techniques, and awareness of safety practices.
Hostage/Bus Bomb Drill. The Alexandria Police Department's SWAT Team incorporates training aboard a DASH bus and conducts a dramatization of a hostage/bomb threat situation. This is a yearly drill and includes a K-9 unit.
ART - Arlington Transit
ART provides quality driver training and active service supervision with an emphasis on safe operation of equipment. Our philosophy is that timely communication and active supervision in support of our drivers is the best way to ensure the safety of our passengers.
The highest risks faced by ART are those of accidental injury as a result of daily operation in traffic with hundreds of passenger boardings. We believe that continuing to focus on doing our jobs well and safely will result in the greatest benefit for our passengers.
 ART encourages awareness among drivers and passengers and cooperates closely with WMATA, local police and other transit operators to be aware of risks and respond appropriately.
City of Fairfax CUE
 The City of Fairfax has investigated options to make their buses as safe as possible for riders. One possibility is to equip buses with a silent alarm that would allow operators to send a distress message using the electronic sign outside the bus. Another being considered is installing a hidden switch or keyless entry feature to start buses. Finally, CUE urges its operators and transit partners to exercise the greatest caution and to reinforce security at bus stations. In addition, CUE has installed beacon signals at bus stops to alert drivers to the presence of riders.
Fairfax Connector
 The Fairfax Connector is committed to providing safe, reliable, high quality bus service to those who live, work or travel in Fairfax County. Since September 11, Fairfax Connector has taken multiple actions to better serve the public and to provide heightened security for bus passengers and employees. Fairfax Connector actively participates in Farifax County and regional efforts to heighten emergency preparedness, including improved coordination and communication.
Loudoun County Transit
All Loudoun County Transit drivers are expected to handle emergency procedures with an emphasis on the safety of our patrons. Drivers receive training on accident procedures, threat recognition and conflict resolution based on guidelines from the Transportation Safety Institute of the Federal Transportation Administration.
All buses have radio contact with company dispatch and management. All services are subject to random checks by safety staff which include equipment, parking lot, bus stop and route safety evaluations.
 Since September 11, existing safety procedures for suspicious packages have been reissued to all staff. Drivers are required to leave their vehicles locked when not in attendance and to check for materials left behind before starting any trip. Any materials found after all passengers have alighted are removed from the bus before service resumes.
Customer input is encouraged. Comments can be made via email to the Safety Director at ppage@yellowtransportation.com.
 Metro
Metro is considered one of the safest transit systems in the country, but they are always pursuing ways to meet the obligation of providing greater security for the employees and riders of the region's public transportation system.
Even before September 11, 2001, Metro had established procedures and plans for appropriate emergency response. Metro police are thoroughly trained, and Metro coordinates their efforts with those of the many emergency response agencies in the region. Metro — and transit systems across the country — will likely play an even greater role in our national defense and national security in the months and years ahead, and Metro will continue to lead the way in this effort.
The following are safety and security improvements Metro introduced as a result of the September 11 attacks.
- Metro implemented Standard Operating Procedures for responding to suspected releases of hazardous materials on a train, a right-of-way, in a rail station and on a Metrobus.
- Metro's Operations department began a new daily "sweeps" program to ensure safety and security inspections of both revenue and non-revenue facilities.
- Metro Transit Police and all Metro employees remain on high alert; additional uniformed and plainclothes officers remain deployed throughout the Metro system.
- Trash containers and recycling bins were removed from station platforms, mezzanines and kiosk areas. Special recycling bins with smaller slots have been placed in some stations' mezzanine areas and we are in the process of purchasing explosives-resistant trash cans.
- Bicycle lockers and newspaper vending boxes have been moved or removed from station underpasses.
- Evacuation plans have been reviewed and updated for all employees.
Emergency Preparedness Page
Metro's Emergency Preparedness Web page lists publications and Web sites about emergency preparedness for Metro customers and area residents, as well as links to information about safety and security in the Metro system.
Metro Safety Awareness Posters
Check Out Metro's series of safety awareness posters featuring Metro employees and the slogan, "The Employees of Metro: Safety. In Numbers." The posters have begun to appear this month in railcars, buses, and Metrorail stations.
   
PRTC - OmniRide
 Passenger safety has always been an important consideration for the Potomac and Rappahannock Transportation Commission (PRTC), and the September 11 tragedy made it more so.
PRTC has established an emergency service plan for OmniRide commuter buses and OmniLink local buses.
Buses are stored in a fenced and "security-locked" lot. Maintenance personnel are at this location from Sunday at 10:00 p.m. to Saturday at 2:00 a.m. because maintenance work is performed late into the evening/next morning before the start of a new service day. The maintenance personnel routinely conduct "drive through" facility checks looking for anything out of the norm.
Bus operators go through a rigorous training program, with significant attention devoted to security-related matters. Operators are instructed on how to inspect their buses for unusual conditions before departing the lot and to report anything unusual.
PRTC also participates in "Fleet Watch" with the Prince William County Police department. The operators have been trained by the police department on how to recognize any suspicious conditions in the park and ride lots and report them accordingly.
PRTC and WMATA are participants in a well-established regional incident response network of transit operating, highway, law enforcement and emergency response organizations to discuss incidents and coordinate responses to them on a real-time basis.
The network proved invaluable in responding to the September 11 attack and in coping with the disruptions thereafter. PRTC also maintains an email notification service ("Rider Express") to provide real-time information to customers about changing service conditions, a service that more than 2,700 customers currently use. PRTC also has an incident response plan for its operating management to guide responses to incidents, including an inventory of available buses/operators in the event an incident requires more buses/operators than PRTC normally has at its disposal. Finally, all buses are radio equipped; the newer ones in the fleet are also equipped with a silent alarm that enables our operators to send a distress message using the electronic sign outside the bus.
There are some security measures not yet in place that PRTC is pursuing. We are moving ahead with a staged plan to acquire automatic vehicle location (AVL) equipment that tracks the whereabouts of a bus using global positioning satellites, beginning with our OmniLink fleet (for which funds are already in hand) and then our OmniRide fleet. Funds are presently being sought for the OmniRide fleet. We are also educating ourselves about security camera equipment aboard the buses to assess cost and effectiveness in the few systems where it has been installed. Finally, we're acquiring new buses which will have the on-board security devices described earlier, replacing retirement-age buses without these devices.
Virginia Railway Express (VRE)
The safety of VRE passengers, both on and off the train, has always been VRE's top priority. VRE and its host railroads are committed to passenger and employee safety on the train and in VRE facilities.
In the aftermath of the September 11 attacks VRE officials have revisited our security procedures throughout the system, all of which are described below. Many of the procedures were in place prior to September 11, while others have been enacted as a result of the terrorist activity.
The bottom line? VRE passengers can rest assured that every train, every day, is safe and secure.
 On-Board Safety
The on-board conductor and assistant conductor are responsible for the safe operation of the train. In addition to their current duties, they, along with our mechanical forces, inspect each passenger coach before each trip including all lockers, storage cavities, under-seat areas, etc. for unrecognizable or suspicious items. While in transit, the conductors also check the trains during the trip for suspicious activity or packages. To supplement these activities en route, VRE has also established roving, on-board, semi-undercover patrols that sweep the trains for suspicious luggage and/or persons. If unattended articles are found and believed dangerous, the crews will evacuate the train and call appropriate law enforcement. All VRE crews have received training in hazardous material (hazmat) recognition and response.
Uniformed and non-uniformed state, federal and local officers with arrest powers are permitted to ride VRE free of charge. These officers will assist VRE personnel in a security emergency.
One passenger amenity that will be affected by the increased security is our lost and found program. Previously, all found items were sent to the lost and found to be reunited with their owners. But because we now must be more vigilant about unattended items, passengers should be aware that if an item is suspicious, authorities may be called and the item may be destroyed. We recognize that this may be an inconvenience to some, but it is a necessary security precaution. Passengers should also be more cognizant about keeping their belongings with them at all times; even a briefcase left behind during an innocent trip to the restroom may concern your fellow passengers.
Facilities and Track Security
Security in outlying layover yards has been increased to prevent unwanted entry, including 24-hour guards and mandatory sweeps of all the trains before the first passenger ever sets foot on a train.
Several new procedures are also in place to protect the track, tunnels and station facilities. Amtrak police are assisting VRE in this regard by patrolling the 1st Street tunnel at Union Station and making extra rounds in and around Union Station and our Ivy City Storage facility to look for suspicious activity. Parking lot patrols have also been supplemented so that more vigilance is given to the security of the stations during service hours.
To further protect bridges and tracks, CSX has supplemented their own police force with contract personnel to increase the number of daily inspections. Norfolk Southern is also stepping up their patrols using their current police force to ensure that the tracks and bridges that VRE and NS (Norfolk Southern) use are secure.
Passenger Responsibilities
Passengers can also contribute to VRE security. VRE is very proud of the strong dialogue that has always existed between VRE staff and our customers. We urge you to keep that two-way communication going.
Following are several steps that each and every passenger should take to help ensure the safe operation of VRE service:
- Be more alert than usual, remaining more cognizant of unusual occurrences or circumstances, particularly while boarding.
- Keep track of your belongings. It is important to keep your bags with you at the station and on the train. As mentioned earlier, VRE’s successful lost and found policy has been modified so that suspicious bags will be turned over to and examined by authorities and possibly destroyed.
- Alert your crew to any suspicious packages on the train or in the station. Crew members can be identified by their uniforms and can be found as they walk the cars or at a station stop near open doors.
- Report suspicious activity or persons to your crewmember or call VRE at (703) 684-1001. Please remember that the conductor is the authority on the train, and he or she will make the decision on how a situation is best handled!
- Finally, in our zeal to be safe and secure, please be mindful and tolerant of others, particularly those who may look different than you. Race, skin color or national original are not the hallmarks of a suspicious person. Actions — not looks — should be what trigger your suspicions. When in doubt, see your crewmember or call VRE.
Additional security measures will be implemented as threats to our nation and city evolve. While every attempt will be made to minimize customer inconvenience, your cooperation and your patience are critical to the success of these efforts. Thank you for your continued support.
Public Safety Links and Resources
Visit the Public Safety Links and Resources page for links to general safety/security information from Metro, government agencies, and local police departments.
Commute Alternatives
Security-related disruptions to area traffic and public transit immediately following the September 11 attack on the Pentagon have resulted in a surge of interest in alternatives to driving to work alone. Commuterpage.com offers a wealth of information about these alternatives: Metro Bus and Rail, Commuter Rail, Local and Commuter Buses, Carpooling, Bicycling and Walking, Telework, Car Sharing, and more. Go to CommuterPage.com® Home.
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