TRANSIT COPS TO GET POLICING POWERS

Transit constables will be given the power to arrest criminals on the
SkyTrain line and regional bus system, Burnaby North MLA Richard Lee
confirmed this week.

Solicitor General Rich Coleman is expected to make an official announcement
by the end of this month.

It's good news for SkyTrain passengers, who have expressed concerns about
security on the lines.

"It will help to suppress crime and create more effective enforcement,"
said Lee, who has been advocating the change for years.

Special constables will become a designated police unit. TransLink
documents suggest the new status will come with new uniforms and badges.

It's believed the change will eliminate the problem of citizens challenging
the authority of TransLink constables, which the transportation authority
says puts transit officers and transit users at risk.

For some time, the 77 special constables policing Greater Vancouver
SkyTrain and bus stations have been pressing for more powers, including the
authority to arrest criminals on the transit system. TransLink has also
looked at the possibility of arming its constables, although Coleman has
since said the officers will not carry guns. A Justice Institute of B.C.
review will take place after the unit is established to determine what
types of equipment the members should have.

Special constables currently carry handcuffs, pepper spray, batons,
cellular phones and radios.

Problems arose because constables lacked the authority to make arrests for
drug possession or outstanding warrants - they can only hold a criminal if
he or she has not paid the fare. The officers currently cannot exercise
their authority in situations that originate off transit properties. As a
result, TransLink is powerless to stop criminals from using transit to flee
crime scenes.

Constables recently received official powers to ban drug dealers and other
offenders from the system for 24-hour periods. For repeat offenders,
constables can compel them to make a court appearance; failure to appear in
court results in an arrest warrant.

They also have the authority to eject panhandlers and fare-evaders from the
transit system. In 2002, 2,558 people were ejected from the transit system
for various offences.

Last November, TransLink's board passed a recommendation to apply for
designated police unit status for SkyTrain constables. The plan has
received the support of jurisdictional police, including the RCMP and the
Vancouver Police Department.

The newly formed policing unit will be responsible to the jurisdictional
police. It will likely be run by a board comprised of RCMP, Vancouver
Police and other regional policing representatives, along with at least one
TransLink representative.

Coleman's office did not confirm the unit would be formed but said an
announcement on the subject will be made in the next two weeks.