New Transit Community Public Safety Department to Roll Out Over Five Years
The LA Metro Board of Directors has voted to establish an in-house police force in response to the increase in violent crimes across the transit system.
The proposed “Transit Community Public Safety Department” (TCPSD) aims to create a dedicated public safety department over a five-year transition period. The board will discuss the plan today, which includes a four-week training program for recruits and a zone-based deployment model for officers.
Metro currently allocates $194 million annually to a multi-agency contract for transit safety. The new proposal outlines four service models, with costs ranging from $155 million to $214 million.
Deputy Chief Robert Gunner highlighted the importance of a focused transit police force, stating, “You will see dedicated metro police with their primary focus on transit services.” The plan calls for 141 additional additional ambassadors for a total of 361 and for 5 additional homeless outreach and 81 additional crisis intervention personnel. All together, with the existing 124 transit security officers there will be 673 care based personnel in addition to the sworn officers.
