Violent crime on the CTA at a 7-year high so far in 2022
CHICAGO (CBS) -- A man was shot and killed Wednesday afternoon at the entrance a Red Line station in Chatham, just the latest example of the increasing trend of violence on the city's mass transit system.
CBS 2's Tara Molina has been tracking violent crime on the CTA for months, and reports violence on CTA property is at a 7-year high.
Around 3:30 p.m. Wednesday, above the crowded Dan Ryan Expressway, a 46-year-old man was standing right outside those doors to the 79th Street stop on the Red Line, when police say a man approached him from the street, pulled out a gun, and shot him in the chest, killing him.
Thankfully no other people were hurt.
We asked Chicago Police if they'd be keeping an eye on this area until the shooter is caught. They said, "We do not discuss specifics of policing, including deployment and patrol."
The fatal shooting on CTA property isn't the first this year. It is part of a continued spike in violence CBS 2 has tracked closely.
That shooting isn't yet included in the latest data available on violent crime on the CTA, but the numbers nonetheless show violent crime on CTA property is at its highest point since 2015, with 375 violent crimes reported on CTA property so far this year; aggravated battery, sexual assault and robbery all at highs.
Eric Dixon, president of Amalgamated Transit Workers Union Local 308, represents the people working the trains.
"A lot of people don't feel safe coming to their jobs, and then we have issues from that with absenteeism and things of that nature, with people not … they're afraid," he said.
Dixon said, despite promises for more police officers and more security guards, CTA train operators have noticed no change.
For years, the union has called for a return of CTA police officers and a second person – a conductor – on every train.
Now, he says they're telling the city, "Let's try something different."
"If that doesn't work, then we can say, hey we tried that, and let's move onto something else," Dixon said.
MOLINA: "The CTA, the mayor's office, and CPD; none of them are responsive to that call for change?"
DIXON: "We haven't seen it happen yet. So, I'll leave it at that."
Chicago Police haven't released any surveillance images of the gunman from the shooting at the 79th Street Red Line, saying if detectives have images they want to share with the public, they will.
No one was in custody Thursday night, and police have provided no updates on the investigation.