The NSW Police Service took responsibility for policing the state's public transport facilities, previously handled by the State Rail Authority who employed special constables to provide this service. Some of these special constables elected to become NSW Police Officers by undertaking a bridging course, while the remainder were employed by the NSW Police Service as Transit Patrol Officers. There is an authorised strength of 300 police officers in the Transit Police Branch which are divided amongst the four Regional Transit Police Branches and the Graffiti Task Force. Some of the branch offices are located at busy railway stations in each of the four regions. The Graffiti Task Force, also a part of the Transit Police Branch, is a squad of plain clothes police who deal specifically with the problem of graffiti.
Transit Police perform high profile beat police patrols for the travelling public.
They assist local police patrols with special operations and work closely with the transit authorities in safety education programs. In an effort to make our public transport safer for everyone, the Transit Police are currently trialing new portable radios that will link them directly to Police, State Rail and State Transit radio frequencies. The Transit Police also engage in the unusual police patrolling methods of team and group policing. Team policing involves police working in teams of four to patrol trains and stations, while group policing techniques employ at least 16 police who target trains arriving at railway stations. Page Design Paul Britton.