Metro kicked off tighter security controls Tuesday, beginning randomized searches of riders’ bags at two stations during the morning commute. The first screenings, typically running well under a minute each, lasted for an hour at the Green Line’s College Park station and Braddock Road stop on the Yellow/Blue lines in Alexandria.
No explosives were found, and no terrorist suspects were arrested, according to spokeswoman Cathy Asato. “It went off as intended,” she said.
Metro started the searches five days after announcing the new policy — and the same day a defective bomb was found in Rome’s subway. But Metro officials said the timing was merely coincidental. They also have denied any connection to the recent arrests of two men accused of threatening Metro.
It is not clear when, where or how often more searches will occur as the transit agency does not plan to announce them. Metro officials had alerted media about Tuesday’s screenings in advance on the condition the information not be published until they began.
Opposition to them is mounting. The local branches of the American Civil Liberties Union are questioning their constitutionality. The D.C. Bill of Rights Coalition and the Montgomery County Civil Rights Coalition posted an online petition, saying the searches attack riders’ civil liberties. And Metro’s Riders’ Advisory Council, which opposed such searches two years ago, plans to host a Jan. 3 public forum.
Metro officials have defended the practice, saying that riders who do not want to be searched can leave their bags behind — or leave the stations and bus stops being screened.
A few riders passing through College Park cursed under their breath when they saw the checkpoint, including one man who muttered “1935” and “Hitler.” But most commuters who were searched said they didn’t mind the scan.
“It was fairly short, not invasive,” one woman said. “I don’t really mind because there are all these terrorist threats and it may make people feel safer.” She declined to give her name, saying she was “big on privacy.”
Lesley Kash, another rider screened, said she appreciated the system keeping everyone safe. “This wasn’t offensive to me at all,” she said. “They didn’t even look in my bag.”
Officials are using a device about the size of a bread box to scan the outsides of bags for hazardous materials. Explosive-sniffing dogs follow up if a positive test occurs. No bags were opened at College Park, but one person needed additional screening at Braddock Road, according to media reports.
Many riders said they knew the searches were coming. But some were surprised when they were singled out. “You just don’t expect it to touch you,” Wanda Wright said after being stopped.
When Bob Baer was tapped for a check, he exclaimed, “Oh, boy!” as he put his bag on the table. “I think I just missed my train but this is a good thing,” he said afterward as he headed to the platform to get to work — at his job at Homeland Security.
