CTA touts drop in crime over past year, but data show concerns remain
CHICAGO (CBS) -- For years, CBS 2 has investigated crime, grime, and reliability issues with Chicago's public transit system. A year ago, the CTA announced a broad plan to address those issues, and on Friday they claimed they've improved across the board.
Have they really? CBS 2's Tara Molina took a closer look, focusing in on safety.
CTA officials said no one was available to talk about the progress report they released on Friday, and it's unclear if they'll be available another day.
What is clear is that, while some crime is down on the CTA, not all crime has dropped.
One year after announcing and releasing their so-called "Meeting the Moment" action plan to improve the system after the pandemic, CTA officials issued a news release breaking down their progress and improvement.
Since CBS 2 was told no one with the CTA was available to talk about that report, we focused in on the safety and security section, an issue CBS 2 has collected data on and have tracked for years.
According to the CTA, overall crime and violent crime both are down year-to-date compared to last year. Overall crime dropped 9% compared to last year, and violent crime went down 13%.
Looking specifically at July, CTA officials said crime is down more significantly compared to last year; with overall crime and violent crime both down 21% compared to July 2022. So CBS 2 ran their numbers, and found while what the CTA claims is true, there are still some concerns.
Year-to-date, robbery numbers on the CTA are way down – from 350 to 254 robberies. Homicides have been cut in half – from 4 to 2. Criminal sexual assaults dropped slightly – from 17 to 15 – but aggravated assaults and aggravated batteries both have gone up, if only slightly – from 76 aggravated assaults at this point last year to 78 this year; and 132 aggravated batteries at this point last year to 135 this year.
| crime_category | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 |
| Aggravated Assault | 26 | 43 | 59 | 46 | 60 | 64 | 67 | 76 | 78 |
| Aggravated Battery | 56 | 58 | 89 | 95 | 88 | 79 | 84 | 132 | 135 |
| Criminal Sexual Assault | 8 | 6 | 5 | 6 | 4 | 1 | 10 | 17 | 15 |
| Homicide | | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 2 |
| Robbery | 244 | 312 | 285 | 274 | 366 | 317 | 284 | 350 | 254 |
| Total | 334 | 420 | 439 | 422 | 519 | 463 | 447 | 579 | 484 |
Focusing in on July, CBS 2 found the same thing.
By the numbers, it's the drop in robberies on the CTA driving the change. Most crime levels are about the same.
Asked about that, a CTA spokesperson said questions on crime data and specific crimes would need to be directed to the Chicago Police Department.
Complementing CPD's efforts, the CTA has more than 300 security guards monitoring the system.
Customer Assistant booths in every rail station are now equipped with a 21-inch monitor display that offers live feeds from that station's security cameras. Each monitor is positioned to allow the on-duty employee to monitor the screen for activity throughout the facility while they carry out their assigned duties either inside or outside the CA booth. The monitors have helped improve the overall awareness of CTA employees of activities in the large footprint of rail stations, a benefit to both customers and employees.
Crime statistics are compiled by the Chicago Police Department, which provides law enforcement for the CTA. According to CPD, Violent crime was down 13% year to date, and 21% month to date (July 2023 vs. July 2022). For further questions about the crime statistics, you may wish to contact CPD.,
Regarding ridership: Ridership has grown throughout 2023 and continues to rise. Ridership for special events and sporting events is at or near pre-pandemic levels. With many offices and workplaces offering a hybrid work schedules, the number of daily commuters has been reduced. As more workers return to the office, we expect ridership to grow.