St. Louis Metro’s Secure Platform Plan helping agency improve ridership, reduce safety incidents
According to the Bi-State Development Agency of the Missouri-Illinois Metropolitan District’s (St. Louis Metro) latest update on the Secure Platform Plan, the agency is seeing ongoing improvements in ridership and declines in safety-related incident numbers, continuing positive trends from July.
St. Louis Metro notes the Secure Platform Plan is a comprehensive strategy to enhance safety and improve the passenger experience by installing new security gates, fencing and surveillance cameras, fed into the Real-Time Camera Center, at all existing 38 MetroLink stations in Missouri and Illinois and a 39th station under construction at Mid-America Airport. The agency says 11 MetroLink stations are currently fully upgraded and operational in an interim mode until new fare validators are installed.
The agency notes installation work of new security infrastructure is currently underway at multiple MetroLink stations as part of Phase III and Phase IV of the Secure Platform Plan, including concrete and electrical work at each station in preparation for their new advanced security gates, which are expected to be delivered in the coming weeks. Construction activities for both phases remain on schedule to have infrastructure upgrades completed at all MetroLink stations by Jan. 31, 2026.
The Secure Platform Plan update notes that St. Louis Metro continues to see ridership growth at stations that have already completed their Secure Platform Plan upgrades, with riders enjoying improved lighting, a better station layout with clearly defined access points and a stronger on-site security presence. The growth in ridership is complemented by a significant decline in safety incident numbers per 100,000 passenger boardings between the first and second quarters of 2025.
“We are still in the early stages of the Secure Platform Plan implementation, but are very pleased to see these initial results,” said Bi-State Development Executive Vice President of Public Affairs and Security Kevin Scott. “By combining thoughtful design with new technology and targeted security measures, we are providing a stronger, safer transit experience and our customers are noticing.”
According to the agency, the August update also highlights progress made on St. Louis Metro’s upcoming transition to a new contactless fare system. The agency has partnered with Masabi and Indra on the new fare system, and their representatives were recently in the area with prototypes of new ticket vending machines and fare validators to allow St. Louis Metro staff to begin testing and early system integration. When completed, the new fare system will provide transit riders with new, easy-to-use fare options that will integrate seamlessly with the new fare gates.
“The Secure Platform Plan project is delivering real, measurable results in the form of safer stations and stronger public confidence in our transit system,” Scott added. “We look forward to seeing these positive trends grow as we continue to make progress on this important initiative.”