Metro officials say the ‘ TAP to exit ’ program seems to be reducing violent incidents.
Stephen Tu, Deputy Executive Officer of Station Experience with the LA Metro, told NBC 4 that violent incidents dropped by 40%.
“Through the “Transit Watch” app, which is our “See Something, Say Something” app, we've actually seen reported crime and incidents down over 40% for things like fights and disturbances, graffiti vandalism, and drug use,” he said .
L.A. County Supervisor Kathryn Barger confirmed the decrease to KNX News’ Jon Baird. Barger, a Metro board member, introduced the motion to launch the pilot program.
“The goal is to try to dissuade and eventually eliminate those that are coming on, evading fare, and victimizing our passengers and our customers,” she said.
The program, which launched in May at the North Hollywood B Line Station, makes riders tap their cards both at the beginning and at the end of their trip. The goal of the program was to keep fare evaders off the system. The program came following a surge in violent incidents on the Metro system.
One rider told KNX News’ Jon Baird he thinks the program is working.
“Yeah, it works pretty good,” he said. “It's real reliable. Consistent.”
Some riders, however, still see issues with the program. Another rider said that you can get dinged by the program if you lose your ticket.
“So if you exit and you lose your tap card, you get a ticket,” he said. “So that's unfair because you pay to get inside and ride the train, but if you lose or drop anything, you're at risk of getting a ticket into trouble.”
The same week that the ‘TAP to exit’ program launched, an L.A. Metro revealed during a public safety hearing at L.A. City Hall that 97% of the people who had been arrested for violent crimes on the Metro system did not have evidence of a TAP card or a fare.
Follow KNX News 97.1 FM
Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | TikTok
Most Popular
Comments / 0