Rider's Almanac Blog

From GM Lesley Kandaras Light Rail METRO Blue Line METRO Green Line Safety and Security Action Plan Transit Police

Listening, learning strengthens resolve to improve public safety on transit

Posted by nmuehlhausen | Thursday, January 18, 2024 3:11:00 PM


Thank you to everyone who turned out last week to share valuable feedback with leaders who spent time riding light rail and at stations.

Reflecting on her experience, General Manager Lesley Kandaras said she appreciated hearing how much riders value light rail and the push to identify work beyond what’s in process already.

“I am humbled and thankful to riders who shared their experiences, and in some instances, deeply personal stories with me,” she wrote.

The conversation continues. In addition to their regular use of transit, leaders will make themselves available soon during night and weekend hours.

You can share your thoughts anytime by emailing [email protected] or by calling 612-373-3333.

Read more reflections from Lesley, Met Council Chair Charlie Zelle, Met Council Transportation Chair Deb Barber, Metro Transit Police Chief Ernest Morales III, and COO Brian Funk below.
 

DURING MY FOUR DAYS on the METRO Blue and Green lines, many riders shared with me how much they value light rail and our region’s transit system more broadly. But they want to see Metro Transit take stronger action to address the problematic behaviors that make riding feel unpleasant or unsafe. The problems riders shared with me are simply, unequivocally unacceptable. At Metro Transit, we need to do more to improve transit and ensure this incredible regional asset is delivering the experience our customers expect and deserve. As a frequent rider myself, I share the frustrations of riders who want to ride light rail but are bothered by what they witness. This feedback is pushing me to review our existing Safety & Security Action Plan and identify actions beyond the work we have in progress already. I am humbled and thankful to riders who shared their experiences, and in some instances, deeply personal stories with me. For example, people I met at Lake Street/Midtown Station shared with me how when escalators and elevators are out of service (often due to damage inflicted by others rather than typical wear and tear), these riders cannot access the station or the destinations they want or need to reach. I also had the privilege to speak with educators in both St. Paul and Minneapolis who work with students transitioning out of high school. They told me that while they’d like to encourage their students to use the train to get where they want to go, they don’t feel comfortable encouraging riding the train at this time. I came away from these conversations with people who experience transit from different perspectives reminded of how important it is that we continue to make improving conditions on our system our top priority. In the coming weeks and months, we will take additional actions to increase presence on our system and educate riders on the expectations we have for all our riders to make the shared experience of riding transit a more positive one. Thank you for your sharing your stories with me. Please reach out to me anytime by emailing generalmanager@metrotransit.org. Sincerely, Lesley

METRO TRANSIT POLICE officers face the challenge of helping a historic number of riders dealing with substance abuse disorders, mental health crises, and finding shelter. Every officer has taken this oath – safeguarding our transit community with integrity and professionalism. We will always police in an empathetic and reasonable manner. They smell the smoke that you do. They see the drug paraphernalia discarded under the seats. They hear the same inappropriate language. And they respond to the unacceptable violence we’ve seen since the pandemic – when what was socially acceptable, seems to have been forgotten. What we need is to get more officers in more places. And that will be a major focus in 2024. It’s no secret that finding officers to join our ranks is a challenge. Every law enforcement agency across the nation is having to rethink how they recruit. We’ve met that challenge, by creating a new Community Service Officer Pathways Program – that will help those complete the college credits required to start their career in law enforcement, for free. We already have dozens of candidates who have applied. You’ll also see a nationwide recruitment campaign in the next few weeks. We’re also launching 3 new social media channels to increase our transparency so that you can see what our officers face each day, along with keeping you better informed about incidents when they occur. We are dedicated to restoring our transit system’s reputation to be one of the best in the nation. Thank you for your support, Chief Morales

DESPIT E A LOT OF GREAT WORK by co-workers from across the agency, too often conditions on our system are not acceptable right now. In fact, on the fourth day of the tour, I arrived at a station ahead of the group and spent the time picking up garbage on the platform. Shortly after, for the second time in three days, I spoke with a man named Olaf, who starts each morning by picking up litter in an eight-block area around Union Depot Station in St. Paul. He shared his frustration about the amount of trash he comes across each day – ranging from food wrappers to soiled articles of clothing to drug paraphernalia. Despite this seemingly never-ending task, you’ll see Olaf back at it each morning because he deeply cares about his community. We share in his frustration. Our maintenance crews are at each station, multiple times a day, only to have their efforts ruined the moment they leave. As staff, we don't create the mess that impacts our customers and leads to the perception that we don't care. We do care. Deeply. At times, we’re at a complete loss – trying to understand the root cause of this antisocial behavior and how to address it. What we come back to is the loss of a shared sense of community. We can rebuild that by following the Code of Conduct and holding each other accountable to it. Another issue I heard from many riders was service frequency on light rail. Right now, we’re aiming to improve frequency by re-looking at moving from 3-car trains to 2-car trains to not overburden our already stretched maintenance teams. We hope to move over to this new schedule this summer and as we proved in the 2022 pilot, this solution will also help reduce the poor behavior we’ve observed happening in middle cars. Finally, I heard a message of encouragement. Our customers appreciated the face time with us and I received a lot of messages of support that everyone has earned. Our customers know that we're trying, many are as frustrated as we are, but they understand the value we add to the region and will be cheering when we succeed. Best, Brian

I WAS HA P P Y T O J O I N our transit riders and staff to experience our system first-hand during the listening sessions. I was able to hear from riders about their positive and negative experiences. It was most gratifying hearing how much they value the service, and how it specifically made it possible to reach jobs, education, services, and entertainment. Also, I heard how the transit riding experience has been diminished by the behavior of some elements on the trains or at stations. There are more people on trains visibly experiencing mental health issues, using drugs, and smoking in the confines of a transit vehicle than there are in most public spaces. Our riders have the right to expect a pleasant, safe trip, and people in crisis have the right to the support and services they need. It was helpful hearing ideas from our customers about what they see as ways to improve service, such as more frequency and more human presence to help create a more welcoming experience. I’m committed to the change our riders and communities would like to see. We are committed to ensuring that every rider has a pleasant experience when they take transit in our region. We understand transit is a service and a service we need to improve. We understand our transit system is critical element of the neighborhoods and communities it serves. Transit doesn’t run through neighborhoods, it’s an integral element of our neighborhoods. Also, I’m committed to making sure our staff have the resources needed to ensure every ride is one that our transit customers take pride in. Metro Transit staff were open about our challenges during these sessions, and I appreciate their openness and look forward to building a better experience for all. It was wonderful seeing our transit staff in action. They are the ones who are experts and make all the extra efforts that are needed. I learned the most from them. Thank you to all that made this a very real and honest experience about our service. With this knowledge, we can and will do better. Thank you, Charlie

S O M ET I M E S, PE O P L E J U S T N E E D a personal connection that says, ‘You matter.’ They need to hear from us and be heard on the critical issues that affect their daily lives. As chair of the transportation committee, I try to bring those voices into the room when we make big decisions about what is next in transit. This is why I was so grateful to be out on our listening tour this past week, to hear from riders firsthand about what matters to them. Some of the voices I heard that I’ll bring to my committee include one rider from St. Paul who uses a powered wheelchair and loves the accessibility our system provides. They asked that we do all that we can to extend that accessibility to our bus system to allow those crucial connections that make up a person’s daily life. They have also seen the system's challenges and asked us to stay committed to our mission to provide great transit. For them, this included updates to our stations, like the one planned for Lake St. and Midtown to have ramp access. I’ll also bring the stories I heard from Donald and Muhammad from TOUCH Outreach, a team working to help people daily as they navigate some of the most challenging circumstances like chronic homelessness, inconsistent shelter, a lack of access to food, or substance use disorders. They told me how important it can be to provide a familiar face to folks in crisis and how we can work to overcome some of these daunting societal challenges with simple acts of kindness like providing water and better shelter outside of our transit system. Most of all, I will bring with me the many riders who expressed genuine hope and optimism for the future. One person happily told us about how grateful he was just to be able to make a quick trip to the grocery store during cold weather. Another talked about how they loved that the light rail provides excellent access to their job as a security guard at Minnesota’s sports stadiums. While they acknowledged the system is experiencing challenges like smoking or drug use, they are also starting to see the effects of the work we’ve done to bring on more security officers and law enforcement to address these issues. I want to express my gratitude to our riders and the people who spoke with us. We heard you, and we will work to make sure you are taken into account in the decisions we make every day. Sincerely, Deb