Onboard Camera Applications for Buses (2016)

Below is the uncorrected machine-read text of this chapter, intended to provide our own search engines and external engines with highly rich, chapter-representative searchable text of each book. Because it is UNCORRECTED material, please consider the following text as a useful but insufficient proxy for the authoritative book pages.

16 CHAPTER FIVE CASE EXAMPLES Onboard electronic cameras on buses have had an impact on the way transit agencies do business. SEPTA and MBTA provided inside in-depth reports on what makes their sys- tems invaluable. CASE EXAMPLE: SOUTHEASTERN PENNSYLVANIA TRANSPORTATION AUTHORITY SEPTA, the sixth-largest transit property in the country, serves five counties in and surrounding Philadelphia and extending into New Jersey and Delaware. There are 1.2 mil- lion daily riders and 330 million per year. Nearly 80% of its buses, trains, and trolleys are currently equipped with cam- eras. Its bus fleet is its largest, with 1,356 buses and 87% (1,245) of those already equipped with seven to 10 cameras each. SEPTA is continuing to equip each vehicle and by the end of 2015, it expects to have more than 10,000 cameras on buses alone. There are currently more than 16,525 cameras functioning on the SEPTA system. Video System Pays for Itself “When you’re on SEPTA, you’re on camera,” says James Jordan, former general counsel of SEPTA’s Video & Evi- dence Intel Center, which resides in its Legal Division, the Office of General Counsel, provides significant sav- ings for the agency. Aside from the video programs’ pri- mary Homeland Security purposes, the authority’s claims and litigation expenses have been on the decline and have saved SEPTA more than $40 million annually. These expenses are decreasing every year, by as much as $11.5 million in fiscal year 2013. This is a sizable return on the $50 million systemwide investment to equip vehicles and stations with video systems. According to SEPTA, the key is that the video surveillance program is being managed by the Video & Evidence Intel Center within the Office of General Counsel. Over time, SEPTA has spent more than $50 million on systems that include onboard vehicle monitoring and fixed systems, at places such as stations and rights of way. It invested $25 million in mobile monitoring with $16 million from the Department of Homeland Security and $9 million from its capital budget. Another $25 million for fixed sta- tions came from its capital budget. SEPTA’s Video & Evidence Intel organization, one of five departments within the Office of General Counsel, opened for business just over 2 years ago and immediately set a goal to minimize accident and insurance claims, a recognized problem since the 1990s. The cameras are constantly watch- ing as the DVR on each vehicle records video during rev- enue service. When an incident occurs, the vehicle operator notifies the control center of the incident. When that vehicle returns to its home location, any video of interest is sent over SEPTA’s network directly to the district office server and thereafter to the Video & Evidence Intel Center at SEPTA’s headquarters (Figure 19). FIGURE 19 SEPTA camera network. Source: SEPTA. The control center records the incident and posts it to the “Morning Report” so that the Video & Evidence Intel Center can • Review all incidents, • Request and retrieve video for review and analysis, and • Reconcile reports and video, creating a file typically within 24 hours of the incident and long before most claims even materialize. SEPTA also uses video surveillance to help with security and operations compliance. Although 90% of the videos are used for legal purposes, 9% assist the Transit and City of Philadelphia Police, and 1% support customer service and

17 operations compliance. (Figure 20). The City of Philadel- phia Police Department has stated, “Over 90% of the video we use comes from SEPTA.” FIGURE 20 SEPTA video systems customers. Source: SEPTA. The Future Not surprisingly, SEPTA has a strategic vision to maintain its success. The vision focuses on expanding, sustaining, and refreshing dated equipment as technology continues to improve as part of SEPTA’s Technology Refreshment Pro- gram. SEPTA is securing funding to equip the remaining fleet and expand coverage at stations. SEPTA is committed to safety and security and will continue to coordinate its efforts with law enforcement throughout the city of Philadelphia, the district attorney’s office, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and others. When the pope visited Philadelphia in September 2015, SEPTA was part of the city’s overall security effort—using cameras in key locations. SEPTA will not only continue to coordinate with other agencies, the camera program will be coordinated among other technology efforts at SEPTA. As SEPTA’s Key Card (New Payment Technology) is rolled out and Smart Stations become active, the surveillance program will be integrated with these efforts and others that benefit from SEPTA’s legal model that has worked so well. Storage and data migration is of utmost importance for SEPTA, especially as the agency approaches surveillance cameras from a legal perspective. SEPTA reconciles all the systems reporting with video. And Pennsylvania’s 2-year statute of limitation for initiation of claims requires SEPTA to store video of interest for 2 years. Thus, SEPTA is con- stantly focusing on metadata collection, retention, and utili- zation. It is always improving on what it has, by enhancing and tightening policies, procedures, and practices on authen- tication, CoC, cataloguing, and preservation. As a video surveillance leader in the country, SEPTA recommends: “Stick with what works,” which for them has been their legal model. CASE EXAMPLE: MASSACHUSETTS BAY TRANSPORTATION AUTHORITY Game Changer for MBTA: Video Technology Personal communications with Randy Clark and Karen Burns at MBTA provided the following in-depth look into their technology on board buses and its invaluable impact. Today, MBTA operates a massive fleet of sophisticated vehi- cles including buses, subways, commuter rails, and ferries in the greater Boston area. The entire mass transit system accommo- dates more than 1.3 million passenger trips each weekday, rank- ing the MBTA as the nation’s fifth-largest mass transit system. When a Department of Homeland Security grant was secured to improve the security of its fleet, MBTA appropri- ated funds for a first-phase upgrade for video surveillance technology aboard 225 of more than 1,100 buses, which serve 180 routes throughout the city (Figure 21). The exist- ing video surveillance systems on board buses were much older and offered limited video quality. FIGURE 21 MBTA on-bus monitor. Source: MBTA. Kenneth Sprague, deputy chief, MBTA Investigative Ser- vices Division, explains that retrieving the video was also a much longer process: If an incident was reported, we would have to go to the bus to retrieve the hard drive, and then download it at the crime scene unit. We also only had 40 hours before the digital video recorder would overwrite video; so, if something happened on a Friday evening, we would have to send someone out over the weekend to retrieve the video. It was time-consuming and inconvenient for our team. With consultancy services, a detailed request for a pro- posal was submitted for public tender that stipulated specific

18 requirements and the need for a working proof of concept. After careful consideration, MBTA chose a system that met budgetary and technical specifications—the latter included access to live video from the operations control center (OCC), automatic offloading of video to long-term archiving when buses reached the terminals, police officer data access to nearby bus systems by means of cruiser mobile terminals, and a few other custom applications. Simplified Video Access Provides Clearer Views on Buses To date, the upgraded video surveillance solution has been installed on 225 buses. Each bus is outfitted with two 360-degree cameras—one interior-fixed high-definition cam- era and three external 720p high-definition cameras. Video is continuously recorded and stored on each of the bus’s network video recorders. To support the sophisticated infrastructure of this application, Ethernet switches were selected for industrial- grade reliability, network redundancy, and seamless integrated security. On the bus, a monitor displays a live camera feed to passengers, acting both as a public advisory of video monitor- ing and as an added deterrent against criminal activities. “Leveraging the security technology to promote an innovative and interactive public advisory forum allows us to encourage passengers to report incidents on the bus,” explains Adam Peters, Transit Security Projects Administra- tor at MBTA. “A message displaying ‘See something? Say something’ alongside a phone number for the MBTA police is displayed below the video feeds. Passengers can also use an interactive app from their mobile device to anony- mously and discretely report events. Often the messages are tweeted. This gives our community a voice and allows them to become actively involved in keeping our city safe.” Two departments within the MBTA have live access to the system from their own control rooms, including the OCC (see Figure 22) and the MBTA police dispatch. MBTA trans- portation executives also have system access. FIGURE 22 MBTA operations control center. Source: MBTA. What makes the installation one of the most unique in the country is the dual-mode radio that allows for simulta- neous wireless and 4G LTE connectivity. This has led to the most notable advantage of the surveillance system for the bus fleet—multiple ways in which the video can be eas- ily accessed. For example, in the event of an incident, dis- patchers and analysts can view video from the bus through the cellular 4G LTE connection, facilitating both real-time emergency responses and investigations. “Recently, there was a report of an assault on a bus driver and the dispatcher was able to pull that bus’s cameras up and quickly identify the suspect,” Deputy Chief Sprague says. “Within minutes, responding officers had a full description and were able to apprehend the suspect. Video surveillance onboard our buses has definitely made our jobs easier and has been an invaluable tool to law enforcement.” Leveraging the LTE connection is also an invaluable part of the investigative process for customer service agents and operators who need to quickly identify the specific time peri- ods of video for passenger disputes or criminal investiga- tions. Instead of guessing or transferring massive amounts of data over the LTE connection, users can simply view video through the LTE connection, identify which segments are required, and submit the transfer request. The transfer itself is facilitated through a customized video requester tool that has simplified the retrieval of video on board buses for long-term archiving. Once the bus is back at the terminal, the system will automatically offload the video to the central archiver through a wireless network and instantly e-mail a notification to the requesting operator once the transfer is complete. This automatic video offloading helps minimize bandwidth consumption and storage, enabling MBTA security teams to keep only the video they need. “We do a significant amount of forensic video analysis for other agencies, such as the Boston Police and Massachusetts State Police to pull events that happen at intersections, bus stations or anywhere else around the buses,” says Jonathan Wing, video analyst, Criminal Investigation Unit. “It’s not just about the safety of the bus drivers and passengers, but really a benefit to the whole metropolitan Boston area.” To ensure the preferred connection mode is in use at all times, integration between the video system and the GPS technology was developed. The video system is able to auto- matically decipher which mode of connection should be in effect, depending on the location of the bus. For example, when a bus is driving through the city, the cellular network is used to transfer video; but once a bus is within the ter- minal’s vicinity, wireless communication takes precedence. The GPS integration is linked to the master OCC system and Google Maps, letting operators know exactly where buses are within the city.

19 The consultant also developed a customized health moni- toring and management tool. A health diagnostic report is automatically e-mailed to the team every day to ensure all bus systems are fully functional. This report helps MBTA plan for any required maintenance and ensures operators and analysts will always have access to needed video. Beyond that, MBTA can perform remote troubleshooting and system maintenance for the various subcomponents in the bus from a dedicated support center as part of a com- prehensive maintenance program. For example, there is an advanced interactive browser-based interface that provides real-time alert notifications of system health, bus location, engine status, and the status of every camera and compo- nent within the surveillance system. The system also offers the capability to push firmware and software updates, to conduct remote system troubleshooting, and to reset any system. This allows MBTA to tap into any bus system and address issues while the buses are moving through the city from a web-based client interface or smartphone, ensuring a very high degree of reliability and service. Onboard Surveillance Leads to Greater Operational Efficiency and Safety Camera applications had a significant organizationwide impact, from a police, legal, and safety standpoint. “The new onboard video surveillance system has helped us improve our customer service and general operations,” Peters says. “Upon receiving a customer complaint such as a slip-and-fall claim, our customer service agents use the video as a tool to verify if the events had or had not taken place, and to validate the details of the incident. With this process in place, we operate the bus service in a fair, ethical and safe manner for the public.” From a safety standpoint, the onboard system represents a constant reiteration of the following advantages: • Immediate access to video on board buses in the event of an emergency • Instant access to nearby buses for responding officers for better preparedness • Quicker and easier investigations for criminal activity or claims • Improved bus driver and passenger safety throughout the fleet • Deterrence of vandalism and random acts of violence • Enhanced investigation abilities for increased citywide safety. “We might not see the actual crime take place, but there is usually activity that leads up to a crime,” Sprague says. “Whether it’s identifying a car in the vicinity or verifying a suspect’s alibi, we have the ability to view, validate and retrieve information in a timely manner. That’s a huge asset for our team’s ability to gather video for forensic evidence and keep this city safe.” Custom Applications Ensure Continuous Uptime and Enhance Bus Safety Implementing the full solution was a massive team effort from the start. The MBTA security and bus departments worked with technology consultants to deliver the complete solution, combining engineering and development expertise to meet the very specific requirements. Everyone came together to push the technological bound- aries of the chosen solutions in the mass transit implemen- tation. This was further enabled by the use of an open and mature software development kit, which allowed for more custom applications to be developed. From mobile data terminals (MDT) in police cruisers, officers can tap into a nearby bus’s video surveillance sys- tem in the event of an emergency. “It’s a great safety feature for the officers on the street because they know what they are walking into,” Sprague says. “They are more prepared to address the situation and to protect themselves.” When there’s a possible emergency, a bus scanning tool enables law enforcement officers on the road to identify buses in the vicinity of their cruiser. To enable this feature and protect the access privileges to this functionality, each bus is correlated to hidden Session Initiation Protocol, which is stored in a database on MDT and automatically updated each time the cruiser returns to its station. Officers simply need to press a “scan” button to retrieve a list of buses within a certain range of their vehicle and select a bus number and automatically connect to the system to see what is happening before responding to an emergency. Another application was specifically developed to help bus drivers alert OCC operators of distress on board the bus though integration of a panic button alarm. The bus driver (Figure 23) has control of the panic button, which prompts an alarm at the OCC. Operators can then click on the alarm to automatically connect to video surveillance system to see what is going on. FIGURE 23 Operator controls panic button. Source: MBTA.

20 Gradual Expansion Continues to Benefit Multiple Departments As MBTA is in the process of upgrading another 60 buses, their long-term objective is to gradually enhance the video sur- veillance systems on all 1,100 buses. Meanwhile, the system’s architecture has been extremely beneficial to their organiza- tion, helping to manage all systems as one from two central- ized locations while still preserving departmental autonomy in their day-to-day operations. This capability encompasses fixed and mobile video surveillance systems across the entire organization and all fleets, reaching terminals, yards, admin- istration buildings, and other mass transportation vehicles for a bird’s-eye view of MBTA’s entire operations. “All of our service and technology partners have played a pivotal role in providing our mass transit organization with impressive capabilities,” Peters says. “This concerted group effort has allowed our departments to respond to various incidents at moment’s notice, and to see what is happening in real-time. This system is vastly more effective than what we had before.” The number of cases that MBTA have been able to close in such a short period of time truly proves the value of this system. Furthermore, customer and driver feedback shows that they feel safer. Being able to keep people safe by deter- ring various types of incidents or to extract evidence is invaluable (Clarke 2014).