SEATTLE — King County Metro is addressing safety issues brought forth by transit employees who, in recent months, have been concerned by the rise in drug use on coaches.
Some of the more immediate changes include hiring 50 additional transit security officers and increasing their 24/7 visibility, according to a King County news release.
Metro will also close a bus stop on 12th Ave. and Jackson St., a junction near Seattle's Chinatown International District that has become notorious for its criminal and drug activity.
The stop will be moved about a block away to continue serving customers, according to King County Metro Director of Communications Sean Hawks.
"In support of the community who live there and for those businesses and those customers, and again, to try to create that safe and welcoming environment for them using transit," Hawks said.
Long term, county officials on Tuesday introduced a plan that addresses overall safety issues reported on King Metro buses. The Safety, Security, and Fare Enforcement (SaFE) Reform Initiative began development in 2020 to "eliminate disproportionately negative outcomes of safety and security policies and practices on customers and employees, especially for BIPOC."
"We understand the frustrations from our customers, from our operators. Some of what we shared this week is prioritizing more proactive steps when there are those are disruptive rider behaviors," Hawks said.
Feedback gleaned from 8,000 people including transit employees, customers and community members, led to several goals such as increasing security presence and ensuring a timely response in dangerous situations on buses, in an equitable way.
The program also aims to assist customers experiencing crises like mental illness and homelessness, with non-transit resources.
Hawks said the plan has yet to be approved with a vote by the King County Council, which received the report last week.
The proposals are a positive first step for transit operators like Amos Brown, who spoke with KING 5 in January about his concerns over drug use on buses.
Since the report, numerous transit operators came forward to KING 5 with similar experiences. Photos shared with KING 5 shows used foil from smoked drugs strewn on the floor.
"Every single day, we discover tin foil on the bus," Brown said.
Brown is glad to see the 12th and Jackson stop will be closed and moved. What he says he would like to see further, is for county leadership and Metro management to see the problem themselves.
"Come and ride the buses. Come and ride in the real hours, not the east-based routes, the east side routes, come ride the 7. Come ride the A-line," Brown said.
Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) Local 587, which represents approximately 3,200 Metro employees, has also expressed concerns over working conditions.
The Washington Department of Labor and Industries has received one complaint from a member of the union, according to L&I spokesperson Dina Lorraine.
Lorraine said in an e-mail that the complaint referred to drug use on buses and that the complainant knew about 650 injury reports submitted by drivers.