King County Metro Plans To Deploy More Transit Security Officers

KING COUNTY, WA — King County Metro plans to roll out new safety measures in the coming months, as part of the broader reform initiative announced earlier this year. Puget Sound's largest public transportation agency began reevaluating its policies and practices during the racial justice protests last summer.

Officials said a safety survey shared in July solicited thousands of responses, which will help inform the process as it progresses.

"Through the survey and many other channels, you shared with us what you love about Metro and also what needs to improve when it comes to safety," said Terry White, King County Metro's general manager. "At Metro, we acknowledge the historic negative relationship of law enforcement with many of our Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC) community members and we are committed to centering equity, public safety, and the voices of those most impacted by systemic racism in all of our work."

In a blog post Monday, White outlined a few steps Metro plans to implement, including a few dozen transit security officers to be deployed on more bus routes:

• Metro will be adding 36 new Transit Security Officers (TSOs) for on-coach deployment. These staff members will serve to increase security presence during all hours of operation, including Night Owl bus service (midnight to 5 a.m.). These additional resources will be deployed on routes not covered by current security teams.
• Six additional Transit Security Officers will be part of a 12-month pilot program to improve response times when Metro’s first-line supervisors request support.
• Twelve further Transit Security Officers will be part of a different 12-month pilot program at Aurora Village Transit Center and at Burien Transit Center. In addition to other duties, these staff members will provide support to our bus operators using these transit centers.

"The implementation plan for these new measures is currently being developed and launch is slated for fall 2021," White wrote. "That plan will ensure that fair, just, and unbiased deployment and presence practices are in place so that we can increase safety and not perpetuate inquiries. For this reason, we will measure and track who is impacted by these practices and how."

King County Metro plans to share a few takeaways from its recent safety survey soon.

Read more on the Metro Matters blog.