Transit officials across the United States — in cities large and small — are rethinking the security needs of buses, trains and subways following the July bombings of London's public transportation system. And while the additional costs for security are dismaying, officials also face a slew of other issues.

In New York, where the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) began random bag searches after the London bombings, MTA spokesman Tom Kelly says a primary challenge for the public transportation industry is the competing needs of security and efficient service. “It's a very delicate balance,” he says. “You'd like to do what they do at an airport and check everybody, but it's impossible. We feel what we are doing is the best under the circumstances.”

Officials in Indianapolis are not taking any chances. In August, they searched all bags and coolers before passengers could board IndyGo bus system shuttles to the Brickyard 400 auto race. “We have to be vigilant,” says Ronnetta Slaughter, IndyGo spokesperson. “We can be more on top of what we do on a day-to-day basis.”

Improving public transportation security, however, will be costly. An industry survey last year suggested there are $6 billion in critical security needs, according to the American Public Transportation Association (APTA). Priorities include radio communication systems, security cameras on vehicles and in transit stations, chemical detection systems, better facility access control, additional personnel, more training and money for overtime.

“Even before the London bombings, the industry was working hard to make the system as secure as it can,” says Rose Sheridan, vice president of APTA. “Since 9/11, the public transportation industry has spent $2 billion on these issues.” Investments range from training, increased police surveillance and video monitors to dog units and intrusion detectors, she says.

At the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA), the operating budget for security has increased from $22.5 million in 2001 to $34.8 million in 2005, according to CTA spokesperson Ibis Antongiorgi. Currently, the Chicago Police Department patrols trains, rail stations and buses, with guards or other personnel at every rail station. The authority also has installed brighter lights and cameras on buses and at rail stations. CTA now is working to determine how cameras can be deployed most effectively and how much their use should be expanded, Antongiorgi says.

In Phoenix, Ariz., where a light rail system is under development, the London bombings prompted officials “to revisit everything we were doing on safety and security,” says Daina Mann, communications manager for Valley Metro Rail, which will operate the system scheduled to open in 2008. According to Mann, approximately 10 percent of operating costs will be earmarked for security.

Part of that 10 percent will be spent on cameras, with six exterior and interior cameras in every area of the trains. Phoenix “will have the most cameras on trains of any system in the United States,” Mann says. In addition, at the end of the line, operators will check each train for items that have been left behind.

Long Beach, Calif., also is counting on vigilance and an improved camera system to detect potential danger. According to Dadisi Wahi, a safety officer for Long Beach Transit, the current video system is outdated and will be replaced with digital equipment. In the meantime, security is posted at the terminals, and access to the trains is limited to one main gate. On buses, “we ask our operators to be vigilant when someone is boarding, and if there is any indication of something suspicious, they would call it in,” Wahi says. “We just don't take any chances.”
— Jim Ludwick is an Albuquerque, N.M.-based journalist.