Westside MAX riders may see more police

TriMet ponders plan to improve train safety, increase patrols

By Christina Lent

The Beaverton Valley Times, Dec 13, 2007, Updated Oct 30, 2009 (15 Reader comments)

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TriMet officials are considering options to increase the number of police officers on westside light-rail trains.

“Our goal is a unified approach to the Transit Police Division with more attention on the west side,” said Mary Fetsch, a longtime TriMet spokeswoman. “How that will happen and what it will look like is still being discussed.”

One idea being discussed is filling five vacant positions in the existing Transit Police Division and assigning them to patrol MAX trains and stations in Cedar Hills, Beaverton and Hillsboro, she said.

TriMet General Manager Fred Hansen announced another plan Friday to invest about $500,000 to create four additional police officer positions in the 36-member unit. He did not specify where their enforcement responsibilities and presence would be focused.

“We’re planning to fund an increase in the number of officers and have more uniformed officers riding on the trains,” Fetsch said.

That means a shift in existing deployment practices for members of the unit.

“Typically, officers are in their vehicles when they respond to calls,” she said.

With Hansen’s proposed enhancement changes, uniformed officers would instead be required to ride MAX trains more often.

The increased patrols riding the rail is a step in the right direction, said Beaverton Police Chief David Bishop, who has serious concerns about the effectiveness of the Transit Police Division as it currently operates.

“I respectfully disagree with my counterparts in Portland, who would like to see the present program enhanced,” Bishop said. “It has not worked – it’s broken.”

Instead, Bishop has joined with other Washington County law enforcement leaders to push for creation of a jurisdictionally specific, multi-agency westside enforcement team.

This westside unit would work in conjunction with the Portland Police Bureau’s administered Transit Police Division, but members of its unit would remain on the west side of the Vista Ridge tunnels and be supervised by local commanders.

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