Sound Transit must make public safety a top priority

Sound Transit has an enormous task: how to deliver on yearslong promises to expand services to North Seattle and the Eastside, bring back pre-pandemic riders and make improvements to some of the Link stations. 

But a serious challenge to the success of billions in investments is ensuring that customers feel they are safe riding the rails.

A recent fatal shooting on the Link between the University Street Station and the Pioneer Square Station once again has some riders and potential riders afraid. 

Sound Transit officials must make public safety a top priority for the public system, especially at night and early mornings.

As of last week, there had been 256 assaults of passengers since June 2023, according to spokesperson John Gallagher. The agency averages about 2 million boardings each month.

In response to the shooting, riders will immediately see an increased presence of transit police and security officers in the area where the killing occurred, he said. That’s good, for now. But a focus in the area where a shooting occurred is not a long-term solution. 

Last spring the transit board approved contracts with four security firms to patrol the stations, areas around the stations, the train cars themselves and the Sounder. Once that effort is fully in place, the number of patrols will be double the number the agency had in 2023.

Police or security officers’ presence can deter some bad actors, but not all. If deployed judiciously, their presence should make a difference not to just make riders feel safer but to actually make their commutes safer. 

The Sound Transit board’s executive committee should engage with its rider experience committee to hear firsthand suggestions from customers as to their experiences and suggestions on where and when security is needed. ST ambassadors are another source of intelligence that can inform security decisions.

As the region prepares for a summer increase in ridership and even more riders this fall with the planned opening of the Lynnwood station and thousands more when the World Cup comes here in 2026, safety in transportation requires strategic, long-term planning. Riders and potential riders deserve as much.