Anchorage Assembly has one meeting left before a transit safety deadline

The Anchorage Assembly meets Tuesday, the day before a federal deadline to adopt an amended transit safety plan. It is the last chance to do it on time.

Federal transit regulators reviewed the plan the Assembly approved in January and found it short. It carried eight of the 14 performance targets the government requires. The amendment fills in the missing six without changing any target the Assembly already approved, and the department's own safety committee has signed off. The Assembly is the last signature needed.

The numbers behind the plan moved in different directions. Assaults involving security staff rose to 35 in fiscal 2025 from 22 the year before. Assaults on bus operators fell to 14 from 21. The broadest category the department tracks, safety and security events of any kind, nearly doubled to 2,073.

One reason those figures are hard to read is a vacancy. The department went without anyone administering its security contract from December 2024 until late July, seven months, and the plan itself says that "may have contributed to gaps in the proper documentation of security officer incident reports."

For the current year the department is aiming lower: 13 operator assaults and 30 involving security staff.