The 50 private security guards patrolling subway stations around Toronto in an effort to reduce violent incidents are set to cost local taxpayers $2.3 million by September.
Security guards provided by Star Security have been assigned to stations with “higher customer needs,” a recent report said.
The patrols were introduced by the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) in January and are set to remain in place until at least September. A spokesperson told Global News the TTC has the option to extend the contract beyond the fall.
A report written for the TTC’s board of directors in June pegged the cost of the security contract at $700,000 from January to April and is projected to cost a total of $2.3 million by the end of September.
It is part of a broader strategy to reduce violent incidents on Toronto’s subways, streetcars and buses.
The report suggested the strategy could be having early success. Since January, incidents against riders are down roughly 36 per cent.
The strategy includes adding 10 outreach workers and two team leads to the TTC, 25 special constables and adding extra cleaning. Private security guards, community safety ambassadors and de-escalation training are also part of the plan.
Extra police officers were also assigned to the subway briefly until March.
The changes to how Toronto’s transit is patrolled were made after a series of violent, high-profile incidents through the winter months.
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Two women were stabbed on a streetcar — one fatally — in January, while a TTC driver was also allegedly shot in the face with a BB gun.
A teenage boy was seriously injured in a stabbing on a bus in January, and in March a Grade 11 student died after an apparently random subway stabbing.
A spokesperson for the TTC said the advantage of private security guards was their flexibility.
“Using guards trained to work in the City’s shelter system allowed us to deploy resources very quickly…within weeks of making the announcement,” the spokesperson said.
“They allowed us to address immediate concerns as we continue to on-board new special constables which can take nine to 12 months between recruitment, vetting and training.”
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