Metro rolls out concealed weapon screening at C-Line Norwalk station

LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- Metro began screening passengers at the C-Line Norwalk station Monday for concealed weapons.

The agency recently expanded its weapons detection pilot program to key high-traffic stations as part of its efforts to enhance safety for passengers and employees.

Millions of people get around Los Angeles by hopping on Los Angeles Metro trains.

Metro buses and trains have been plagued by increased violence recently.

"I commute often. I have a vehicle, but the traffic is crazy, so me commuting saves me about an hour or so," said Metro rider Jazzman Harris.

But some riders sometimes find the mode of public of transportation unsafe.

"I have a 20-year-old son, and I'm very skeptical with him commuting sometimes because it can be a little sketchy at times," Harris said.

"There's been some pretty sketchy people. I've heard a lot of stories from other people about terrible things that have happened. So the more safety, the better," said commuter Yvonne Flores.

L.A. Metro is making an effort to make trains safer by expanding its weapons detection technology to more high-traffic areas like the C-Line Norwalk station.

"Weapons do not belong on our Metro system," Metro Board Chair and L.A. County Supervisor Janice Hahn said.

The non-evasive technology detects and identifies weapons based on the density of the objects.

If the pillars are triggered, then the rider goes to a secondary screening.

"What we've estimated is the impact to the rider that's going through the screening process itself. If there's nothing detected: two seconds. If there's something detected, no more than 10 to 15 seconds," Robert Gummer, Metro's deputy chief of system security and law enforcement, said.

People who refuse to go through the system won't be allowed to board a train.

County officials say improving the safety of commuters is a top priority as the city inches closer to hosting major events like the World Cup and the Olympics.

"I think more uniformed law enforcement, weapons detection technology, more ambassadors and more people who are visible to help out people on the system will make it safer for everybody," Hahn said.

Metro said it will assess the technology for the next 12 months across various stations to help determine if it should be used across the entire transit system.