Metro Police Increase Presence For Start Of School

By Jessica Gould

As schools go back into session, some students are studying up on subway etiquette.

Leslie Campbell is a captain with the Metro Transit Police. But these days, he’s become a bit of a professor, teaching high school students lessons on Metro Manners 101.

"I talked about ridership etiquette with the students and parents," says Campbell. "About talking loudly and about not using profane language. Things like no eating, no playing of radio devices, no drinking on the Metro system."

Earlier this month, three teenagers were charged in a giant brawl that erupted on the Green Line. The fight involved as many as 70 people and sent several of them to the hospital. But Campbell says only a small group of young people actually starts trouble on the trains.

"We need to be clear. It's only a small minority of teens that actually cause the problems," he says. "The overall majority of the teens are being teenagers, going to and from the school and traveling."

Still, Campbell says, Metro Transit Police will be out in force during the first weeks of school to make sure all riders get where they need to go safely.