Attachment A - Valley Metro Memo.pdf

Re: December 2023 Update to the City of Phoenix Public Safety and Justice 
City Council Subcommittee 
Background: 
Valley Metro Rail operates across 28 miles, three urban communities, serving 35,000+ 
weekday trips, an increase of 17% from this time last year. While ridership is increasing, 
security incidents were lower in October than the average in FY23, with 2.2 incidents 
per 100,000 boardings in October 2023 vs. 2.8 across July 1, 2022 – June 30, 2023. 
Valley Metro continues to work collaboratively with law enforcement agencies in Mesa, 
Tempe, and Phoenix to provide uniformed police presence on the regional light rail 
system in combination with advancing the other rail security program tiers, as noted 
below:  
In 2023, Valley Metro participated in an American Public Transportation Association 
(APTA) safety and security peer review of the regional transit system. Working with the 
Valley Metro Board of Directors, we are in the process of implementing their  
recommendations. The multi-step action plan underway now is of primary importance to 
agency leadership.  
The Valley Metro Rail security program was designed in collaboration with Mesa, 
Tempe and Phoenix. The program continues to evolve to address the needs of the 
communities we serve including social and environmental challenges that impact public 
spaces nationwide, including public transit.  
Valley Metro and our member cities remain committed to delivering safe, high-quality 
transit experiences to our thousands of daily riders, with a majority of riders feeling safe 
and secure on the system. Transit security is also a strong emphasis in our draft, five-
year agency Strategic Plan being advanced to our Board of Directors for adoption in 
early 2024.  
Attachment A

PS&J Council Subcommittee – December 2023 Update 
11/29/23 
Page 2  
 
 
Subcommittee Update: 
Valley Metro has had the opportunity to share public information on the regional light rail 
security program with the City of Phoenix Public Safety and Justice City Council 
Subcommittee on September 6, 2023 and November 1, 2023. Staff provided an 
overview of the rail security program, current challenges, possible future actions and 
responded to additional requests for information. Below are a few updates since the 
November 1 meeting memo, including progress on areas of our transit security action 
plan: 
 
• Security Personnel: 
o Continue hiring, training and on-boarding of new team members. 
o Increased field supervision and roving patrols per revised deployment 
strategy; monitoring effectiveness across Q4 2023. 
o Continue coordination with local law enforcement on uniformed police 
presence across system, including in Phoenix.  
o Addressing workforce shortage challenges with Allied Universal’s regional 
executive leadership, including a 60-day action plan.  
o Revised deployment strategy for more real-time, systemwide response.  
 
• Facilities: 
o Re-opened the 19th Ave/Dunlap plaza on October 30, 2023 following 
security and environmental design improvements, including the creation of 
a striped and signed fare zone. 
 
• Fare Inspection & Ticket Vending: 
o Working with current fare system vendor to improve performance of ticket 
vending machines (TVMs) and handheld verifiers (HHVs).  
o Continue to conduct inspection through an alternate inspection and 
verification process,  
o Working closely with City of Phoenix, the contract owner of the future fare 
collection system, to expedite future technology solutions and associated 
hardware, including new TVMs and inspection devices. 
 
Next Steps: 
Security concerns and their potential policy and budget implications are regional in 
scope. The Valley Metro Rail Board of Directors will convene in executive session in 
December 2023 to discuss potentially sensitive security matters.