Security tightened at LRT

The Light Rail Transit Authority (LRTA) has adopted tighter security measures at the LRT in the wake of the terrorist attacks in the United States last Sept. 11.

"We put in place security measures to forestall any attempt to wreak havoc in LRT. We don’t want a repeat of the bombing incident last year when LRT commuters and employees were killed," said LRTA administrator Teodoro Cruz.

A bomb exploded in LRT Blumentritt stations on Dec. 30, 2000 and police investigators have identified Muslim extremist elements as the culprits.

Cruz revealed that police bomb disposal experts will be deployed at LRT stations while bomb-sniffing dogs would be deployed randomly in its stations. This will augment the efforts of some 400 LRT security guards.

"I would like to seek the cooperation of commuters by submitting themselves to inspection. This is for their own safety and I hope they will understand," he added.

This developed as Transportation Secretary Pantaleon Alvarez has ordered a crackdown on scalpers selling LRT magnetic swipe cards.

Alvarez said the LRT must keep a sharp eye on scalpers because they only "compound the woes of the commuting public."

LRTA had replaced tokens with magnetic swipe cards to improve its services and to have a better monitoring of passengers and revenues.

Under the token-less system, LRTA sells single journey tickets worth P12 for the entire stretch of LRT and stored value tickets worth P120 for multiple rides.

These scalpers are usually newspapers and candy vendors at the foot of LRT stations who sell the swipe cards at a higher price.

"We ask the public not to patronize scalpers. These scalpers are the same ones who sold tokens. We must not tolerate this kind of activity," Alvarez added. – Sheila Crisostomo