Doubts Resurface on Ability of RTD Police to Handle Blue Line

Can the understaffed, overextended transit police from the Southern California Rapid Transit District handle security on the Blue Line trolley from Long Beach into downtown Los Angeles when it opens this summer?

That question--first raised by a panel of police specialists a year ago in a critical report to the RTD--is being asked again by the Los Angeles County Transportation Commission as the two transit agencies gear up to start operations of the 22-mile light rail line, the first stretch of a new commuter rail system planned for Los Angeles County.

The future of the Blue Line--and all other rail projects--hangs on the public’s perception of how safe these new, high-tech trolleys will be, rail experts agree. If commuters feel unsafe on the trains, they will drive their own cars or ride the bus.

Both of the transit agencies agree the problem is critical because the Blue Line runs through high-crime areas and gang turf in South-Central Los Angeles. Graffiti and vandalism are already a major headache, months before the first trains are scheduled to run.

Security is also very much on the minds of potential riders, according to a public opinion poll conducted recently for the commission. Well over half of those polled were concerned about gang activity and the possibility of shootings; one-fourth said the fear of crime would keep them from riding the trolleys.

The commission--which is building the $871-million line--doubts the transit police department’s ability to adequately police the rail line. Commission officials want the RTD to hire the Los Angeles County Sheriff to police the line, at a cost of up to $10 million a year. The commission would pay the bill with local transit tax dollars.

“I don’t think there is a chance the RTD police force can provide the security that line needs by the July 16 start-up,” said Neil Peterson, commission executive director. “Most law enforcement professionals and public at large believe . . . the sheriff would be a much more effective entity to provide security.”

The commission has contracted with the RTD to operate the Blue Line and all other commuter trains that will eventually run on a 150-mile rail network now being planned. RTD officials contend that the transit police are qualified to handle security and they have already started hiring and training more officers.

RTD police recruits and sheriff’s trainees are required to have at least a high school education. They undergo about 16 weeks of state-approved training. The RTD’s starting monthly salary is $2,465--about $300 a month lower than sheriff’s deputies.

The police issue--the latest dispute between the area’s two big transit agencies--is up for debate before the RTD board today.

Peterson said the commission’s doubts are based on the troubled history of the transit police and the findings reported by three top law enforcement officials hired by the RTD to review its police department last year.

This peer review found that the RTD police department--then operating without a chief--was understrength, had a high turnover and suffered from low morale. They reported that the department’s ability to handle district security had already deteriorated.

“There is a question whether they are capable of dealing with the added responsibility associated with the (Blue Line),” wrote Gerald D. Hotopp, director of police services for the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority. The report recommended a reorganization and a major increase in funding.

In the two years before the review, the RTD’s police force was racked by controversy. The former chief had left amid charges he had fixed parking tickets and accepted lodging in a Palm Springs condominium owned by a consulting firm hired by the RTD. Several RTD police officers had either quit, been placed on leave or been fired after they complained about job discrimination, the department’s internal problems and the way officers treated minorities.

Top RTD officials say problems reported by the review board are being corrected. A new chief has recently been hired and morale is no longer a problem, they said. The RTD would have no trouble policing the Blue Line, they said.

“We have done some reorganization and we have provided the transit police with clear sense of identity,” said Alan F. Pegg, RTD general manager.

However, not all RTD problems have been solved, Pegg acknowledged. In a police force stretched over a five-county area, there are 15 vacancies on the regular force of 75, he said. And the RTD will have to hire 50 off-duty, part-time policemen before this summer if it is to have enough officers to police the Blue Line.

Despite its problems, Pegg said, “We have a fully qualified agency that can provide more security than the sheriff can . . . at less cost.” He provided no figures on the cost comparison.

Some of the RTD’s bus drivers said that police protection leaves something to be desired. Some complain that calls for help with troublemakers sometimes go unanswered.

“They just don’t show up,” said one driver, who did not want to be named. “A lot of time they are busy and have calls backed up. I know that . . . but we need help.” He and two other drivers said they rely more on other police agencies than transit police.

Riders expressed similar views in the public opinion poll taken for the county commission. Those polled rated the performance of the RTD police below that of both the Sheriff’s Department and the California Highway Patrol. In filmed interviews, several passengers were critical of the transit police attitude.

“They had no concerns (for people),” said a woman passenger who had helped an elderly woman who had fallen in the bus. When transit police finally arrived, she said, they were brusque and uncaring. Another woman added, “It’s no question about their qualification; it’s their attitude toward the situation.”

The recently named RTD police chief, Sharon Papa, denied that RTD officers are slow to respond or are insensitive to needs of passengers and drivers.

“That is ludicrous; our response time is quicker than the LAPD or the sheriff,” said Papa, a nine-year RTD police veteran. “Our officers are sensitive.”

While she had not seen the commission poll or the taped interviews, she discounted the reports, saying pollsters too often ask leading questions. She said most of the public is not aware of the transit police force and would tend to know more about the Highway Patrol and the sheriff’s office.

The dispute has evolved out of the often rancorous relations between the two transit agencies. RTD officials contend that the commission is trying to weaken the RTD’s control over the line. Commission officials deny the charge, saying they only want to ensure riders’ safety.

After lengthy discussions, the district and the commission agreed that the proposed Blue Line security force should be increased to 101, double the earlier staffing level. The increase came after both agencies began to have second thoughts about how to control vandalism and graffiti.

The commission is paying the sheriff’s office $1.3 million to police construction sites and rail line facilities until July 16, when the line is expected to start running.