Contra Costa BART Riders May Notice More Police Patrols
RICHMOND (KCBS) - BART police officers are fanning out, and quietly riding lines and patrolling platforms in Contra Costa County, because that's what riders asked for.
KCBS' Janice Wright Reports:
BART received feedback from many riders who said they never would seem to see officers on their train. They responded with specially designated patrols on the Baypoint-Orinda and Richmond to North Berkeley lines. This is not to be be confused with the extra officers on heavily traveled lines, which are funded by a Transportation Safety Administration.
Patrol Bureau Commander Daniel Hartwig said the extra dozen officers are on platforms in the peak morning and evening hours.
"Later in the afternoon and later in the evening they will be on patrol on the trains in those locations," said Hartwig.
Although crime on BART has recently shown double digit decreases, and very little crime happens on the platforms or trains, the agency has the balancing act of patrolling both inside and outside the paid areas.
"We have a select number of officers available and we have to strategically deploy those people to meet the needs of both of those areas," said Hartwig.
The patrols seem to be working. The latest passenger survey of police presence shows the system ranked at doing a "good job," and trending up.
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