Why Arent’t Metro Transit Police ON THE Actual Trains?

[Anonymous]

Rode the metro recently and it dawned on me (while some kids were misbehaving) that it’s been years since I’ve actually seen a uniformed officer patrolling the actual trains. Someone must have reported the kid incident or dialed 911 because when we pulled into a station, a dozen officers boarded the train to pull them off (which means a dozen of them were congregating fairly close to this station because I was the only one sharing the train car with the kids for most of the journey). It’s great that they have fancy cars and state if the art equipment and training but GET ON THE TRAINS.

[Anonymous]

Maybe they are riding in plain clothes.

[Anonymous]

Because they can't eat their donuts on the train!!

[Anonymous]

But the officers were at the stop. If they were on the trains, you might need to wait for them to get off one train, and then try to meet up with the train that has the hooligans on it. If they are at the stations, there is someone to respond at each stop to issues. And it's way less management of who is where while riding around.

[Anonymous]

From the website:

"MTPD has an authorized strength of 490 sworn police officers, 64 security special police, and 91 civilian personnel."

Let's say half of them are on duty at any given time (though it's likely fewer than that) It's impractical potentially impossible, to have an officer on every train. Even if it were possible, it disperses the force through out the system without the ability to react in anything like significant numbers to an incident.

[Anonymous]

I think it'd be more dangerous to have them on the trains. A single officer could be overpowered by a team of just two men who could then get his weapon. Then you have two unstable people in a confined area who are now armed.

Also, as someone who worked at a courthouse and saw the way some officers took mumbles and comments under the breath of those there for hearings, I'd not want a hot-headed officer in a confined space with someone who doesn't like cops and is into antagonizing them.

[Anonymous]

I have occasionally seen them on the trains, esp if there is an event like a hockey game.

I have also seen Metro Police cars driving to stations where there has been a report. They have to cover a lot of ground.

Everyone should have the text number to make reports in their phone, it is the quickest way to get a response. If safe to do so, also call 911, MPD in DC, VA or MD may get there first/fastest.

[Anonymous]

So someone reported an incident/disturbance and the police promptly responded and you're mad because....

[Anonymous]

they're stuck in traffic trying to get to the metro station

[Anonymous]

In the last few months, I've actually seen them maybe three times during evening rush hour.

[Anonymous]

It's more profitable to write traffic and parking violations in the Metro lots. However, I know some people. I will ask around.

[Anonymous]

Metro runs 120 trains at peak hours. Seems to me that they have enough officers to cover that and with the SPO’s could provide a presence at every metro stop as well. Take a look at what NYC does. They have National Guard at Penn and Grand Central stations. D.C. is ground zero for potential terrorist activities.

[Anonymous]

Are there cameras on the metro trains? Honest question.

I don't ride that often. I was coming back late one evening after attending a show with a friend who lives in the city. There were some teens in the car with me (no one else, just me and 5 or 6 teens) who were being obnoxious in the way teens can be. Nothing too bad or any kind of harassment. They were playing music on their phone out loud and dancing. Some swinging on the bars and like I said, just being annoying teens.

A few stops later was my stop and as I was getting off, four officers got on and made the teens exit. I was waiting around for my Uber and 3 of the teens went walking by and recognized me. They got pretty aggressive with me, yelling at me for not minding my own business, very much in my face, etc. etc. I told them that I had not alerted anyone about them but they didn't believe me. No one else had been on that car with us but someone had to have alerted the authorities?!

[Anonymous]

It’s easier to cover multiple stations by car.

Imagine one cop in every train. If a train has a problem and needs to stop, how would that cop get backup assistance?

[Anonymous]

European trains have officers riding in the trains. They act as deterrents that prevent issues from happening in the first place.