Federal Transit Administration Launches Nationwide
Transit Safety and Security Awareness Program

During her keynote speech at the Opening Session of the American Public Transportation Association's (APTA) Annual Meeting in Salt Lake City, FTA Administrator Jennifer Dorn announced a new nationwide safety and security awareness program designed to encourage the active participation of transit passengers and employees in maintaining a safe transit environment.

"Safety and security are top priorities of the Bush Administration and Secretary Mineta," said Administrator Dorn. "Our nation's transit agencies are better prepared and more secure today than they have ever been, and this program is an important next step in the industry's efforts to ensure that public transportation passengers and employees are aware of their surroundings, alert to suspicious activities, and know what to do when and if they observe something unusual."

The Transit Watch campaign was developed in collaboration with industry partners, including the American Public Transportation Association (APTA), the Community Transportation Association of America (CTAA), the Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU), and the Transportation Security Administration (TSA).

Similar to the highly successful nationwide Neighborhood Watch crime prevention program implemented by the National Sheriff's Association in the early 1970s, Transit Watch is intended to raise the awareness of transit employees, riders, and the general public. The campaign was also designed to help foster the role of transit as a safe haven in communities across the country. While the campaign will add value in individual systems, the presence of a universal symbol throughout the country as a result of implementation by multiple systems of all sizes will further increase the campaign's value. Transit agencies are encouraged to embrace the Transit Watch initiative by adapting the program to meet the needs of their community, and to use this program to initiate or strengthen their agency's safety and security public awareness efforts.

Transit Watch was designed for easy and low-cost implementation. The Transit Watch Toolkit containing a downloadable CD with the campaign logo and tag line, a brochure, signage and poster slicks, a template press release and fact sheet and a one-page guide entitled "5 Easy Steps to Launching Transit Watch" is available at no-charge. It is critically important that all transit agency employees know what to do, if and when passengers bring safety and security concerns to their attention.

Agencies will have the capability to customize the materials with their own information, and are encouraged to select the campaign and accompanying visuals that will most effectively address their community to maximize interest and involvement.

For more information, contact Tina Burke in the FTA's Office of Communications and Congressional Affairs at 202/493-0937, tina.burke@fta.dot.gov or Gail Taylor in the FTA's Office of Safety and Security at 202/366-1218, gail.taylor@fta.dot.gov.