In a significant shift, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass publicly acknowledged Wednesday that she did not think the city’s Metro system is safe.
Just last month, she touted LA’s public transit system declaring “the Metro is safe” while celebrating an increase in ridership.
When asked Wednesday whether she still thought riding Metro was safe, she responded she did “not feel the same way.”
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Bass is scheduled to join Metro leaders at a news conference Thursday as she introduces a motion intended to make Metro safer for riders and operators. The motion is expected to be voted on at the next Metro Board of Directors full meeting.
Her statement came amid escalating fears among commuters following a string of violent incidents, including three within 48 hours.
Early Thursday, two people were taken into custody for climbing on top of a metro train in downtown Los Angeles. Officers responded to the Historic Broadway Station in the 200 block of South Broadway about 4 a.m. after receiving a report from security.
A teenager was stabbed Monday on a Metro bus in Glendale. Later that day, a woman was attacked inside an elevator at a Metro station in South Los Angeles.
On Tuesday, a person was robbed and assaulted aboard a Metro bus in the Encino area. That attack occurred shortly after 2 p.m. on a bus near Ventura Boulevard and Balboa Avenue. Metro officials said a man was robbed of a cell phone and was hit in the chest.
"As chair of the Metro (board), I am right now working with my colleagues -- the other members of the board of directors -- on a motion that we'll put forward at the next meeting, which is next week, that will be calling for an increase of patrols, increased visibility, on the buses and the trains," Bass said Wednesday.
Some Metro passengers said their anxiety reached a boiling point after the recent attacks, including a woman being stabbed inside a Metro elevator in South LA.
“I’ve seen purse snatching, I’ve seen people being pushed over,” Rashed Sahir, a metro rider, said.
The ongoing violence intensified calls for immediate intervention from passengers.
“What is she doing to fix it?” Elizabeth Vasquez asked.
Mayor Bass acknowledged that there’s been an “issue with crime” over the past few weeks, adding she’s working on a motion to call for an increase of police patrol and visibility on buses and trains.
“Clearly there is a spike. Clearly we will aggressively address that,” said Bass, who also said .
LA County Supervisor Kathryn Barger also said she was working with the Los Angeles Police Department and the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department as well as Long Beach Police on a plan for increased enforcement. The agencies also confirmed their involvement.
