The CTA’s ridership woes aren’t diminishing. Ride-share’s growing popularity among Chicagoans plays a big role in that trend. What threatens to make it worse? The rising rate of serious crime on CTA trains.
The Tribune’s Joe Mahr and Mary Wisniewski recently reported that the number of serious crimes reported on the CTA’s rail system rose from 1,187 in 2015 to 2,371 last year, a 99.7% jump. It’s a trend that outpaces the rate for buses, and for the city as a whole.
Roughly 4 of 5 CTA train crimes reported in last year’s tally were nonviolent thefts, and many of those cases involve stolen cellphones. Crimes involving violence on CTA trains also are on the rise — up 89% from 2015 to 2018.
At the same time, the arrest rate for crimes committed on CTA trains has dropped. In 2015, 1 of 4 cases culminated in an arrest. In 2018, the rate was 1 of every 6 cases. The trend for nonviolent crimes was far worse: Police made an arrest in only 1 of every 50 committed in 2018, compared to 1 of 14 cases in 2015.
More crimes committed on CTA trains and platforms, fewer criminals caught. That’s a recipe for a worsening ridership crisis. Train ridership plummeted from 241.6 million rides in 2015 to 225.8 million in 2018, a 6.5% drop.
So what’s the fix?
The ubiquity of security cameras on trains, on platforms and in stations was supposed to be part of the solution. Today, there are about 32,000 security cameras deployed throughout the CTA system. But an army of surveillance cameras isn’t, as criminologist Eric Piza told Mahr and Wisniewski, a silver bullet. If the city doesn’t have enough personnel to monitor those cameras and pore over footage, no amount of cameras is going to reverse the rise in crime.
The CTA says the Chicago Police Department has beefed up its patrols at stations. Time will tell how much of an impact that has. Police say more crime is happening on trains versus platforms and stations. Sensibly, police and CTA private security guards have stepped up their patrols on trains.
Still, there’s something every CTA rider can do to thwart thieves.
What do you see when you’re on the train? A car full of commuters, their eyes locked onto cellphones, oblivious to what’s happening around them. How about a bit more alertness, or even safely stowing your cellphone for the five or 10 minutes you’re getting from A to B? Is another idle browse through Instagram worth the risk?
Riding on the CTA is relatively safe. The odds of a rider becoming a victim of a serious crime remain low. But again, they’re double what they were in 2015.
That’s troubling. Chicagoans need the CTA to function smoothly, quickly — and most important, safely. If that doesn’t happen, look for more Chicagoans to find other ways to get around.
Editorials reflect the opinion of the Editorial Board, as determined by the members of the board, the editorial page editor and the publisher.
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