MetroLink to unlock ticket gates when guards are away from posts

Metro Transit officials say they're making changes to MetroLink gates after riders reported problems with a new ticketing and security system at some stations.

The new system temporarily requires workers to open gates and let ticketed passengers onto the platforms, which has caused riders to miss trains or be locked out of stations, according to members of the advocacy group Citizens for Modern Transit.

On Thursday, the St. Louis region's transit agency announced it would address those problems by keeping gates unlocked if workers have to step away from their posts at the platforms.

Metro has installed the locking gates at 11 of the 38 stations in the system but has not yet put automatic ticket validators or vending machines in place. Until then, security guards must be posted at the entrances of those stations to let ticketed passengers onto the platforms.

“We’ve had a significant number of observations where maybe staff wasn't present and they almost missed their train, or they're worried about missing their train,” said Travis Wood, program director at Citizens for Modern Transit, during a forum with Metro officials Thursday.

Customers will still need to present valid tickets to guards when they are at the gates, agency officials said.

MetroLink, which spans 46 miles from the Metro East to St. Louis County, is transitioning away from an open access ticketing system. For years, anyone could board the train without scanning a ticket. Metro workers onboard would occasionally walk the trains and check whether riders had paid.

After years of complaints about safety and nonpaying riders, Metro Transit invested more than $50 million in upgrading the light rail stations.

The new closed-system platforms require passengers to scan tickets for entry. Updates to the stations also include live camera surveillance of platforms, locked gates and turnstiles, enclosed fencing, ticket validation machines and vending kiosks at stations.

Kevin Scott, Metro Transit's general manager of public safety, defended the rollout of the new gates Thursday, saying he wanted to put them in use immediately, even if they required an interim plan for guards to let people in.

“What I wanted to do as the project leader was show a tangible, viable result in a security impact,” he said at the forum. “And we have seen significant security impacts from those gates.”

Scott said security incidents have decreased since the agency installed the gates.

Metro officials say they expect all MetroLink stations to feature the upgraded fare system in 2026.