Riders of the Washington area’s Metro system are vulnerable to terrorist attack because the federal government continues to focus almost exclusively on aviation security, according to a House Homeland Security Committee report.
The report on America’s rail system found that for every $9 the Department of Homeland Security spends to keep an air traveler safe, it spends one penny to protect a bus or subway rider.
Washington, a target of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks and home to the nation’s second-largest subway system, is particularly inviting to terrorists, say homeland security experts.
The Metro system is vast, open and easily accessible.
Metro spokeswoman Candace Smith said the report confirms the need for more protection for bus and subway systems. She cited deadly attacks in London, Madrid, Japan and the recent discovery of a plot by al-Qaida to release hydrogen cyanide in New York subways.
“The terrorist, unfortunately, strikes mass transit systems with regularity,” Smith said.
In Washington’s Metro, 1,538 trains operate on more than 206 miles of track and during April, the average weekday ridership in D.C. was 739,525.
The report criticized DHS and TSA for failure to cooperate with state and local governments. The partnership between the layers of government “has long left state and local governments paying the check without really knowing what they are paying for and why,” according to the report.
In citing the federal government’s mismanagement of money, the report noted that Washington, D.C. Metro had to wait 10 months to receive grants.
At a glance
» In 2003, graffiti artists in D.C. demonstrated how easy it would be for a terrorist to gain access to slow-moving Metro trains, the report said.
» A Washington ban prohibiting the transportation of hazardous material through the city has yet to be implemented because CSX Transportation challenged the ban and the issue is still in court.
» Although there are 43,000 airport screeners, there are only 100 inspectors to cover the 300,000 miles of freight rail lines and more than 10,000 miles of commuter lines in the country.
