What happened to the private SEPTA guards?

Submitted by notnobodyspecial t3_10adw4b in philadelphia

Is it just me or are they gone? They might not have been the most effective, but these trains need someone to help dissuade all the smoking and shit behavior and I never see actual SEPTA transit Police or Philly PD.

Literally saw some dude roll a shopping cart onto a train today, someone is always nodding off from drugs or booze. They might as well designate one car on the el as a rolling homeless/drug clinic. I have sympathy for these people, but public transit needs to be usable.

None of this is new, but damn it's tiring.

167

Comments

You must log in or register to comment.

notnobodyspecial OP t1_j43plk5 wrote

Also, if you're going to be a degenerate and smoke can you at least vape? It's 2023, the 10 year old next to me doesn't need your shitty second hand smoke.

164

beachape t1_j43um4x wrote

The smoking on trains has gotten crazy. The violence, homeless, and occasional dead bodies from overdoses aren’t great, but now I have to get to work smelling like bong water.

124

PM_Me_Your_WorkFiles t1_j47aqlk wrote

How many times have you seen a dead body on the train here?

7

beachape t1_j47awyr wrote

Counting the platform or only moving train cars?

3

PM_Me_Your_WorkFiles t1_j47ysaf wrote

Yeah both

2

beachape t1_j4835bn wrote

One on a car and a few on the platforms. The SEPTA workers already knew about them. In most cases I just saw people coming to move the bodies.

9

justanawkwardguy t1_j480v46 wrote

I've seen one on a moving train car, none on platform

3

TheMegatrizzle t1_j46n6a7 wrote

Some lady was trying to fight a mother cuz the momma didn't want people smoking around her baby on the BSL.

People just don't care about anyone but themselves. Guards didn't do jack shit when I saw. Kids would just go to the cars where the guards weren't and spark up. Rinse and repeat.

9

mortgagepants t1_j482vg0 wrote

the worst part about this is weed is essentially legal in philly. so you can just roll a blunt anywhere you want. dont leave blunt guts on the train floor. don't chief on the El.

just roll your blunt, throw your litter in the trash, stand on the street corner and puff away.

7

beachape t1_j49mh7j wrote

I’d rather listen to the Christian R&B boom box guy than get stuck in a smoke filled train car. I don’t care if people smoke weed outside or even on the platform, just don’t smoke in the cars.

5

Scumandvillany t1_j44rf6n wrote

I've said it before. There's no political will to do the ONLY thing that will work, and that is remove and exclude the zombies and shitbirds from the system. No need to ticket, just a yeah, buddy, you gotta go, bye. And then don't let them back into the system Of course you'll need manpower and the will to actually do so. Firm payment barriers would be a great start, and would do 90% of the work. Like a design that would make it really really difficult, if not impossible to not pay and get on the platforms, or even stairs going into the system.

67

notnobodyspecial OP t1_j44v85p wrote

I don't think that's the only thing that would work and it definitely won't work unless the city treats this as a wider problem. Your suggestion just pushes these people into other corners of the city to terrorize. I'd much rather our city/country actually tackle the homeless/drug problem head on. With Kensington being the epicenter of the county's war on drugs, with people from all different states flocking here, this should be declared a federal emergency with funds to match.

And in the near term, the city should invest its current budget surplus in getting transit cops at the busiest stations / riding the trains. Deal with abusers in real time - If you're suggesting the police not allow people to use transit before they actually commit a crime/act unruly, I'm not a fan. I don't want a police state.

There also needs to be more personal responsibility and respect for the city. Littering on and off transit is out of control, but that starts with having adequate trash cans and with people taking pride in the city and just being decent. I don't know the best way to change this.

53

Scumandvillany t1_j467viu wrote

I'm suggesting not letting people ride who are not riders and don't pay 2.50 to get on the system. Pretty simple. The transit system is not and should not be used as temp housing, an asylum, a toilet, an injection site, and a smoking room. Then I'm saying that if people are breaking rules actively, like smoking, pushing carts, panhandling, sleeping, using drugs, tenting up, they should be removed without citation or criminal charge.

Of course we have systemic issues that need to be dealt with. I'm not sure if declaring an "emergency" will do that, but if it brings resources and is followed by political action then sure, fine.

We clearly need a program like MANDATORY SHELTER AND TREATMENT, which is the obvious answer to a lot of issues.

27

d-scan t1_j4cgcjd wrote

When I was in Paris they had teams of ticket gestapo, ahem, police, who would go to each passenger and ask to see their ticket. And if you don't have your ticket, they would issue a fine and pull out a card payment device. Honestly, I could not see SEPTA or the city going to such efficient lengths to deter the riff raff. But ANY kind of effort of enforcement would be better than what we have to put up with currently.

3

scatterbrainedpast t1_j4giho9 wrote

All the federal funds would be given to useless, corrupt NGO's who all happen to be run by friends and family embers of CC members

1

BigHmmEnergy t1_j45wn56 wrote

The problem with firm payment barriers is that they are also firm barriers to escaping in the event of a fire or violent incident. They’re easy to get through on purpose.

16

Scumandvillany t1_j4683bm wrote

Easy to make a reverse hinge or whatever to allow passage from the paid area. It's not hard.

16

Time_Definition_2143 t1_j488t34 wrote

What if the fire is on the other side?

Also, one person can pay and then let everyone else in for free.

−1

owenhinton98 t1_j47n392 wrote

Having worked with the fare payment hardware in an internship 5 years ago (when the current equipment was brand new), I can tell you that all of the gates have failsafes for this exact reason. They could easily put the full height vertical turnstiles into all stations, whenever there’s any emergency they all relax and allow free flow through. In the event of a power outage, or a fire alarm activation, this mode is triggered. And anyone can pull the fire alarm should a violent situation occur

2

burrata-academy t1_j48rctr wrote

I don't think stairs would be a great idea because disabled and elderly people deserve to use SEPTA too. But yeah, the other things would be helpful. A solution that doesn't just throw people into jail which just perpetuates the problem, but actually could yield results

2

Scumandvillany t1_j48xh90 wrote

You could design the entrance so that it could be ADA accessible. They're already doing something similar elsewhere

1

_crapitalism t1_j4aejj3 wrote

all that does is make them go somewhere else, which in the end really helps nobody, especially not the people suffering from addiction. what we need are safe injection sites, which help everybody involved, from people worried about cleanliness on septa, to people who are going through addiction.

0

UndercoverPhilly t1_j4b03qp wrote

It is a bandaid, but it would at least clean up SEPTA which is a start.

4

[deleted] t1_j4gixf0 wrote

[deleted]

2

_crapitalism t1_j4gudl0 wrote

do you think some sober guy walking down the street sees a safe injection site and says "Wow! This seems like a great time to take up heroin!" before walking inside?

1

sha1ashaska22 t1_j46531t wrote

If the Sixers really think a downtown arena is a good idea, they better be planning to hire their own septa security force. Imagine when the suburb crowd tries to take the El to Market East.

The state of septa is far beyond embarrassing for the city.

58

hamdynasty t1_j469xcr wrote

How much do you want to bet that right before the world cup arrives in 2026, all of sudden there's a ton of resources thrown at this problem? (and not before)

47

Capkirk0923 t1_j46rf1c wrote

I used to work in the MSB, notorious for the insane amounts of homeless people living outside it. One year, they had the Dinner En Blanc there, and the day of I swear there was not one homeless person to be seen, not even the "regulars." It was the strangest thing, as if they had been rounded up. Then, they were back gradually over the following week.

18

justanawkwardguy t1_j461f7u wrote

I report snyder station almost every day and mention that a security presence would make a lot of their problems go away

46

railman305 t1_j475612 wrote

You're not a fan of those druggies that took over the top of the escalator at Synder station?

21

Past_Cartographer230 t1_j481kg5 wrote

I’ve seen multiple people just shooting up on the stairs south of Snyder across from the Walgreens. Septa really can’t put one fucking cop there.

5

courageous_liquid t1_j46jhra wrote

Since nobody has a real answer: one of them choked someone and SEPTA cancelled the contract.

Also a person nodding off doesn't make the car unusable.

36

AdministrationNo9238 t1_j46xsjk wrote

Can I get a source?

3

cheviot t1_j44k70z wrote

Report them using the septa police app. They can and will roll police out to remove/arrest smokers

28

afdc92 t1_j46yxqk wrote

I won’t ride the El or BSL alone anymore, I feel too unsafe both in the stations and on the trains. I feel compassion for people who are homeless, mentally ill, and struggling with addiction, and there are certainly some who aren’t wanting to bother anyone but just want a place to rest that’s sheltered and warm, but they shouldn’t be able to take over stations and train cars and treat them as bathrooms and drug dens. And then there’s plenty more who are extremely disruptive (begging, harassing other riders, screaming, fighting, etc.) and even downright dangerous. Not to mention the unsupervised groups of kids and teens who make a ruckus, harass people and even mug and rob them, the people who decide to start stabbing or shooting, or rapists and robbers who take advantage of the lack of police/security presence. It’s just not a place I want to be anymore.

28

_crapitalism t1_j4ae12s wrote

I don't mind the addicts as much as I do the teens. I feel bad for people with drug addiction. it's a medical problem that needs medical intervention, but our city has chosen to not give them that bc the safe injection site got nimbyed away. the teens however, are evil and terrifying. was on the trolley the other day and they were yelling the entire time, mostly insulting the appearance of other riders, and eventually throwing pennies and loose change at one old lady. you can't even really intervene bc the kids are so fucking insane they may just beat the shit out of you. there's no recognition of consequences for their actions. we so badly need to create activities for kids after school, bc the absence of those is creating a massively toxic culture.

11

afdc92 t1_j4bh1k9 wrote

Oh, the teens fucking terrify me. At the very least they’re a nuisance but there’s been more and more instances of them being extremely violent, like the group of kids who were like 14 and younger who beat an elderly man to death with a traffic cone and were filming it. It’s a dangerous combo of no impulse control, brains not fully developed, and parents who aren’t controlling their kids.

7

IPA_lot_ t1_j43osc7 wrote

They didn’t help at all. Them being there wasn’t even a deterrent in any way.

11

notnobodyspecial OP t1_j43pgrr wrote

They moved some people along at the very least. I'll take something over nothing.

45

FrankGrimesApartment t1_j43qkjg wrote

They also had a penchant for beating up riders.

−8

Gabagoo44 t1_j44hjsy wrote

Lmao, downvoted for bringing up something that happened.

14

AbsentEmpire t1_j444v59 wrote

That was one guy. Theg mostly just couldn't be bothered to even pretend to be doing anything since SEPTA policy didn't let them even look like they were security theater.

8

Farzy78 t1_j44ss2k wrote

They never really did anything anyway

8

HotBiscotti1 t1_j46vl8q wrote

doubt this behavior would significantly decrease with cops. more like people start getting tickets for hopping the turnstile. that’s how it goes in new york

3

lizzieblaze t1_j47j151 wrote

I'm not mad at someone bringing their shopping cart. I bring a big backpack with my possessions in them, and cyclists bring their bikes. But IDK, I don't hate the homeless population like most of the city seems to. They are part of the public and also have a right to ride.

3

mundotaku t1_j4cwnxx wrote

The amount of needles in the floor is insane.

3

Aromat_Junkie t1_j43w7p4 wrote

when I was homeless the only place i could safely sleep at night was on the train. Conductor would come by at fern rock and wake me up and I'd hop another.

Now it's not even safe enough for me to sleep on the train

−6

notnobodyspecial OP t1_j44akzm wrote

I'm sorry you were in that position. I don't blame you or anyone else in that situation when we have such a terrible social safety net in this country. But with that said, there's too many unhoused that treat the train like absolute crap.

23

Ajaws24142822 t1_j46dyui wrote

This is why I fully support cars now

−9

AnarchyBurgerPhilly t1_j4as24b wrote

The new gentrifyers are the same as the racist old white people that used to live in my city. You guys just pretend you aren’t classist and racist. At least with the old crew I knew exactly what I was getting, and they had to die for porchetta not overpriced soy burgers. I missed when racist assholes were easy to spot. You guys suck too you just have more traits of sociopathy so you are harder to identify as pricks.

−9

notnobodyspecial OP t1_j4b9u9v wrote

Yes, because not wanting people smoking/littering/shooting up on a vital public good while also wanting more resources for unhoused and addicts is definitely racist. Make it make sense.

13

TurdCrapley23 t1_j4bf756 wrote

Lol. Not sure what "soy burgers" has to do with the absolute sorry state of disrepair that the El is in.

Not wanting to ride in filth and used heroin needles doesn't make you classist.

10