Chemical Sensors Installed in Subway

After two years of experimenting in secret, Washington’s Metro subway system will activate sensors in two downtown stations next month and become the first subway in the world that can detect a release of toxic chemicals.

The move signals that the technology is ready for use in other subway systems, airports, malls and other large, enclosed public spaces, federal scientists say.

Anthony Policastro, an engineer at Sandia National Laboratory who is overseeing the Metro project, said his team will continue to improve the sensors but that the basic system works. “We have been testing for some time, and we’re satisfied,” he said.

That has encouraged subway managers in Chicago, Atlanta and Los Angeles, who, along with National Park Service officials, have expressed interest in the technology, Policastro said. Boston has begun experimenting with a sensor. And scientists are installing sensors in an undisclosed airport, Policastro said.

Work on the $7.5-million Metro sensors began in 1999 and was progressing quietly until Sept. 11, when the terrorist attacks made it a priority among lawmakers and administration officials. On Thursday, Congress approved $15 million to expand Metro’s sensor program from two stations to 12. Transit Police Chief Barry McDevitt said the goal is to install sensors in all 47 underground stations.