San Francisco’s BART Sets Guidelines for Shutting Down Riders’ Cellphones

For what may be the first time, a government transit agency in the United States has adopted a formal set of guidelines for when passengers' cellphone service may be shut down.

The Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) agency's board of directors approved a policy on Thursday allowing cellphone service to be interrupted under extraordinary circumstances that pose a substantial public risk. Analysts say similar sets of protocols will likely become increasingly common as mobile technology continues its spread into everyday life.

"This is a new frontier we're entering," BART communications officer Jim Allison told Mashable on Friday. "Five years ago, we didn't even have cellphone service underground."

BART's new policy comes after the agency faced widespread controversy this August for shutting down cellphone service to impede a planned protest following the fatal shooting of an knife-wielding man by BART police in San Francisco. (That shooting came less than two years after a BART officer shot and killed an unarmed and physically restrained man early New Year's Day in front of a train crowded with holiday revelers.)

Groups including the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and Electronic Frontier Foundation condemned the intentional service interruption this August, which in turn triggered a new round of protests.

On Friday, ACLU attorney Michael Risher criticized BART's new policy but praised the agency for creating a formal set of guidelines.

"I hope other agencies of all types will learn from what happened with BART and realize that this isn't something to be taken lightly, but only to be used in specific circumstances, and adopt their own policies," Risher told Mashable.

BART spokesman Allison said such specific circumstances could include a known terrorist threat or planned attack. In 2004, a series of coordinated bombings of commuter trains in Madrid used explosives detonated remotely by mobile phone to kill some 200 people.

"I think it's a good thing because it clearly defines the type of situation in which a cell phone service interruption could become necessary," he added. "It doesn't leave it undefined so there can be questions after the fact of why we would do this."

But ACLU attorney Risher said the new policy still leaves excessive room for interpretation.

"In addition to explosives and hostage situations, they talk about including speech that includes specific plans to destroy district property, which could include something like ripping down a poster," Risher said. "We have a hard time believing BART is going to push the boundary that way but wish the language were stronger."

At a downtown station on Friday, San Francisco resident and occasional BART rider Christopher Ingram said that he disagrees with the new policy, which he finds to be impractical.

"It's like saying if we have the guy planning the next 9/11 attack we can torture him," Ingram said, incredulous. "You're never going to have that, and communication is too essential nowadays."

What do you think? Should government agencies ever be allowed to shut down cellphone service? Should there be specific guidelines, like BART just adopted? How do you weigh public safety against freedom of speech?