Mass Transit Officials Share Best Practices
News & Happenings
December 7, 2007
Forty-seven of the nations' 50 largest mass transit agencies sent representatives to the Transit Security and Safety Roundtable sponsored by the departments of Homeland Security and Transportation in Los Angeles this week.
The gathering offered participants a roundtable format to discuss security and opportunities to work together and share best practices."These meetings allow us to discuss issues that are germane to the industry," said Paul Lennon, general manager for Mass Transit at TSA. "In the wake of worldwide mass transit attacks, these meetings are critical."
At the request of the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department, TSA deployed a Visible Intermodal Prevention and Response (VIPR) team at nearby Universal and North Hollywood mass transit stations to give participants a "hands-on" opportunity to see a team in action. TSA's Lennon said many of the participants have not had VIPR activity at their facilities and were anxious to learn about them.
This is the seventh semi-annual meeting. "Two years ago, 24 agencies were represented at this same forum," Lennon said."The benefits are demonstrated in the ground swell of support and participation."
The LA Sheriff's Department, Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transit Authority and the Southern California Regional Rail Authority hosted the conference.
Keynote speakers included Los Angeles Police Chief William J. Bratton, a former transit police officer in Boston, who also stressed the need for partnerships in combating terrorism. "You cannot do it without police and the police cannot do it without you. Security is about partnership," he said."Security is not going to happen on its own."
Los Angeles County Sheriff Leroy D. Baca focused on the impact of media during emergencies as well as lessons learned about critical incident response from the Minneapolis bridge collapse.
The idea of partnership was a large focus of the meeting.California's biggest security challenge is "the sheer size of this state," said Gary Winuk, chief deputy director of the California Governor's Office of Homeland Security. "Everything we do is based on partnership."
