Unlike Patco, No Passenger Bag Searches on SEPTA

Patco this past week began random searches of passengers as part of a stepped-up security effort, but on the Pennsylvania side of the Delaware, SEPTA has no such plans.

KYW's Mike Dunn reports Patco is participating in a federal security program run by the Transportation Security Administration, or TSA (see previous story). The program is called VIPR, for "Visible Intermodal Prevention and Response," and PATCO's random searches, which began last Tuesday, are required in that program.

Over at SEPTA, spokesman Richard Maloney says his transit agency is not part of VIPR so no random searches of passengers are planned:

"We believe, and TSA believes, that we have thoroughly covered security aspects from a terrorist standpoint. We are ever vigilant. But at this point, unless we get other information or recommendations, we don't see the need for doing searches."

Maloney says SEPTA does have other cooperative efforts with the TSA, including a special bomb detection unit.

(Photo by KYW's John Ostapkovich)