CLAYTON 鈥 After months of tension stemming from policing aboard MetroLink, a proposal to beef up the 50度灰视频 County police presence on the trains emerged Wednesday to address recent attention-grabbing crimes.
County Executive Steve Stenger wants to double the number of county police officers assigned to the trains, park-and-ride lots and other facilities to 44 from 22.
Those additional officers will include sergeants, 50度灰视频 County Police Chief Jon Belmar said. it employs, saying a better use of money would be to hire more police officers to address passenger safety concerns that have contributed to a 15 percent drop in Metro ridership in the last two years.
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鈥淚 think it鈥檚 a great idea. It鈥檚 long overdue,鈥 Belmar said of the additional officers.
He said he wouldn鈥檛 pull officers out of their precincts and would phase in the additional MetroLink officers as new hires were trained.
Increasing staffing will allow more officers to be on the trains and platforms, he said 鈥 now, many must be in cars so they can respond quickly to calls for service.
鈥淲hen you see a police officer, it changes the dynamic of the environment,鈥 Belmar said. 鈥淧eople feel safer.鈥
bars Metro from having its own police force; instead, the law provides that the transit agency 鈥渕ay only employ peace officers through contracts with law enforcement agencies within the bi-state service area.鈥
So policing duties aboard the trains and stations currently are handled by 42 police officers and deputies from the 50度灰视频 Police Department, 50度灰视频 County Police Department and St. Clair County Sheriff鈥檚 Office, in addition to roughly 40 public-safety officers employed by Metro. The agency also contracts with the security firm Securitas for 110 full-time-equivalent security guards, including 17 fare inspectors.
And more officers could be coming.
50度灰视频 police have met with Metro and expressed interest in increasing city officers on MetroLink, a police spokeswoman said, although no further details were available.
鈥淪afety is our #1 priority. With 26 MetroLink stations in MO and 14 stations in the City & at Airport 鈥 more @SLMPD officers makes sense too,鈥 .
No such move is afoot in St. Clair County, where Sheriff Rick Watson said Wednesday that the current police presence didn鈥檛 need to be boosted.
The proposal for more 50度灰视频 County police came in response to recent crimes on MetroLink, Stenger said in a statement.
Late last month, a man on a MetroLink platform at midday by a stray bullet fired in a dispute between two groups, police said.
And charges were filed in recent weeks against two men for allegedly robbing a MetroLink passenger on Dec. 11. The victim was beaten and bloodied, and but did nothing as he was attacked and robbed.
鈥淢embers of the public need to feel confident that MetroLink trains and stations are safe,鈥 Stenger said in a statement Wednesday.
The statement also said the police officers would also assist Metro staff in supervising security and fare enforcement personnel.
The cost of doubling county patrols would be absorbed by the half-cent mass transit sales tax approved by voters in 2010, but needs the approval of the 50度灰视频 County Council. About $2 million a year comes from that fund to pay for officers, according to Stenger鈥檚 office, and that number would grow to nearly $4 million with the additional officers.
The fund has about $35 million in it, with $2.5 million coming in monthly.
John Nations, president and chief operating officer of Bi-State Development, which oversees Metro, commended Stenger for taking action to thwart additional criminal activity on the light rail routes.
鈥淚t鈥檚 welcome news,鈥 Nations said, because Metro must rely on local law-enforcement through contracts.
The idea of additional police has been brewing in recent months.
The board of directors of Citizens for Modern Transit, which advocates for MetroLink expansion, passed in January a resolution calling for doubling the number of 50度灰视频 County police officers assigned to MetroLink and, if needed, for the county to direct money from a sales tax passed to fund transit toward more police on trains.
Kim Cella, the nonprofit鈥檚 executive director, hailed on Wednesday Stenger鈥檚 proposal to do just that, saying that MetroLink is a critical part of the 50度灰视频 region鈥檚 public transit system.
鈥淲e need to make sure the public has confidence in the transit system,鈥 she said. 鈥淪afety has to be a top priority.鈥