Safety in Montreal, for the holy metro

Public transport safety is in the news again after two violent incidents at a metro station last week. Although the metro is very safe, there is reason to take a closer look at what is going on underground and the gaps in current security measures.

Société de Transport de Montréal (STM) officials are telling the truth when they say the metro is very safe. Violent crime there peaked in the late 1980s, followed by a three-decade decline. Although crime and violent acts have increased significantly since 2021 (up 63%) and should be taken seriously, their levels remain historically low.

The increase in violent crime seen since 2021 has led many to call for an increased presence of police and security agents in the metro. These calls have been heard. Since late 2021, the Service de la Ville de Montréal (SPVM) has routed the majority of 911 calls from metro stations to nearby stations, allowing approximately one hundred patrol officers in the metro area to respond. focus on online criminal investigations.

The STM has also hired additional security agents, increasing its special constable team from 170 members in 2021 to 200 by the end of 2023. In addition, last January he created six “security ambassadors” units, and their number should reach 20. members by the end of spring. Finally, in November 2020, a new combined team, the Metro Intervention and Counseling Team (EMIC), and 8 psychosocial workers from the civilian detachment, the Mobile Mediation and Social Intervention Team (EMMIS), were introduced. ), placed in metro stations last December.

These actors play different roles in a “multi-tiered” model of police intervention, from simple psychosocial intervention (referring a homeless person to outside social services) to ticketing for “misconduct.” ” (for example, sleeping on a chair) to persecution and imprisonment (in case of actual criminal activity).

The limits of multi-level police intervention

All these levels of police intervention are aimed at one goal: to maintain the safety or sense of safety of the average subway user. The safety of homeless and marginalized people has been put on the back burner. In fact, these people are usually the ones who pose a threat to the safety of others, even if they are the ones who experience violence and criminal behavior on the subway and elsewhere.

Community organizations are unique in prioritizing the needs of marginalized people, but their resources are increasingly limited. Although Montreal has increased its budget for police and security officers, since last year it has not funded the services of street and support workers. According to the Support Network for Single and Homeless People of Montreal (RAPSIM), this investment will result in the loss of 30 street and support jobs by 2025.

The scope of this approach to security is, of course, limited, as almost everyone now understands. While Quebecois figures continue to call for an increased police presence, it is widely acknowledged that the current security problems are merely a symptom of other social problems that the police cannot solve, including the SPVM. According to the new consensus, the solution is to increase funding for housing and other social services, and the Quebec government is being asked to provide it.

However, this new consensus also presents certain shortcomings. First, it continues to portray vulnerable people as a problem that needs to be addressed – in the gentlest way, of course. Social services are then seen as the missing piece of the security puzzle, with no one doubting that the current pieces (larger police and security forces) are correct.

Both of these assumptions can and should be questioned. In fact, many security models ignore them entirely.

To global transport security

Over the past three years, cities like San Francisco and Philadelphia and nonprofits like ACT-LA and TransForm have developed comprehensive transportation safety plans that prioritize the needs of the most vulnerable. These plans recognize that policing does not always provide security. For many people, especially racialized and homeless people, the police are a de facto source of safety, and their presence can interfere with the support offered by street workers—two observations also made in Montreal.

Furthermore, rather than seeking to eliminate vulnerable people, comprehensive security plans are aimed at meeting their needs at public transport stations (among other places). For this, partnerships with community organizations can provide direct support to marginalized people in stations, and social service centers (with supervised consumption centers) can be introduced in some stations.

Public transportation riders may know how to navigate different social environments. Using brochures, posters and videos, they learn to distinguish between real threats to their safety and merely uncomfortable situations. They can also be taught basic crisis management and witness intervention techniques.

The overall goal of these measures, as explained by the ACT-LA Alliance, is not to rid transit stations of perceived threats, but to turn them into “sanctuaries” from which to serve the needs of the most vulnerable populations. better security for all.

A ready safety is not the missing piece of the puzzle when it comes to Montreal. Instead, Montreal needs a new route.

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