Airports have them; government buildings have them. Now buses in Brazil's crime-hit Rio de Janeiro state may get metal detectors to ward off gun-toting criminals. More than 1,600 bus robberies occurred in the state last year. The route between the city of Rio, the neighboring town of Niteroi on the other side of the scenic Guanabara Bay and nearby beaches is considered to be one of the most dangerous. In what would be the world's first such effort, a prototype of the device will be tested over the next few weeks, a Rio state transport spokeswoman said on Friday. "The president of the department requested the detector in order to reduce the number of holdups," she said. If approved, the device will be compulsory on more than 1,000 interurban lines run by more than 100 companies. --More 2357 Local Time 2057 GMT
