Arrive Magazine - September/October, 2010

All Aboard!
Staying Safe and Secure

The safety and security of our passengers and employees has been Amtrak’s highest priority since we began operations in 1971. The security enhancements you may witness on your trip today are safeguards put in place to help protect you. Our identification policy, random screenings in stations, random on-board ticket verification process and more interactive police e;orts—including our K- 9 teams—are some of the visible activities we have been working on.

The men and women of Amtrak’s own police force work diligently to help keep you safe. Under the command of our Chief of Police, John O’Connor, the nearly 300-plus sworn o;cers of the Amtrak Police Department patrol our stations and trains every single day.

In addition to keeping a watchful eye over the operations of our system, these men and women work closely with the Transportation Security Administration and other federal, state and local law enforcement and counter-terrorism agencies all over the country to cast a wide crime-prevention net. We also collaborate with our counterparts across the globe, sharing best practices and other information.

The partnerships don’t end there. We provide our employees with security training and we rely on their vigilance to serve as the eyes and ears of the railroad, whether as a track inspector or a ticket agent in a station. Also, Chief O’Connor and I meet regularly so that our senior management team and I are kept informed of our activities on the law enforcement front.

Take for example the accomplishments of O;cer Richard Beynon, our 2009 Amtrak Police O;cer of the Year. During his 34 years with the department in Philadelphia and Harrisburg, Pa., O;cer Beynon distinguished himself as a first-class law enforcement professional. He has apprehended and arrested high-risk felons, assisted local drug task forces in keeping hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of narcotics o; the street, and developed fruitful working relationships with municipal organizations on behalf of Amtrak.

O;cer Beynon and his colleagues are an invaluable part of the Amtrak family. I am proud of the level of professionalism they exhibit and the work they do every day.

Your watchfulness is extremely valuable, too. Please don’t hesitate to let an Amtrak Police o;cer or other Amtrak personnel know if you see something suspicious—call APD at 800-331-0008 or 911 in an emergency.