Nate Long was among dozens of random commuters detoured on their way into the CTA Red Line's Grand stop Thursday morning: to have their bags checked for explosives.
Long, 24, was about to catch a train at the Near North Side station just before 9 a.m. when a Chicago Police officer told him he had been randomly selected for the screening-part of a counterterrorism initiative launched this week at some the CTA's 140-plus rail stations.
He agreed to the testing and walked to a screening table-just outside the turnstiles leading to the trains-and plopped his shopping bags down.
There, several Chicago Police officers greeted him including one who handed him a CTA "If You See Something, Say Something" brochure and another who swabbed the outside of at least one of the shopping bags. Officers are using a cloth swab to swipe the bags and then insert the cloth into an explosives-detection device.
Almost instantaneously, the test came back clear and Long was on his way.
"It only took a few seconds," Long, who's in town from Ann Arbor, Mich. told reporters after the testing.
He said he hadn't heard about the security initiative but said "safety is always a positive thing."
But he wondered "why me?" when he was approached for testing.
"I was concerned about how they choose each person," Long said.
Chicago Police were at the stop from 6 a.m. to 9 a.m., and said earlier in the day that every 30th person who walked into the station was asked to have their bags tested. Officers said they are only swabbing the exterior of the bags-not opening them up for examination, though that could happen if there's a problem.
Last month, police announced the rush-hour screenings-which officially began Monday-and said most of them would take place at downtown stations, though they're not disclosing where the testing is being done.
"We can't get more specific about our deployment for obvious reasons," Chicago Police spokesman Martin Maloney said in an email. "The implementation of this program has been efficient so far, and many people continue to express appreciation for CPD's presence."
Police made no arrests but one rider refused to submit to the screening and left the station without incident, Maloney said.
Police have swabbed the bags of about 200 riders since Monday, Maloney said.
Passengers can decline the screening, but will not be allowed to board a train at that station. Riders can leave that station and board a train at a different station.
One rider, Tim Kelley, who agreed to have his bag screened griped "What about the fourth amendment?"
Last week, Mayor Emanuel defended the screenings, saying "The world is different" and "We need to be constantly updating our safety and security."
While officials have declined to disclose the pricetag for the CTA security initiative, it is being fully funded with part of a $3.5 million federal anti-terrorism grant.
Contributing: Chicago Tribune