The phrase,'Unsound Transit', was coined by the Wall Street Journal to describe Seattle where,"Light Rail Madness eats billions that could otherwise be devoted to truly efficient transportation technologies." The Puget Sound's traffic congestion is a growing cancer on the region's prosperity. This website, captures news and expert opinion about ways to address the crisis. This is not a blog, but a knowledge base, which collects the best articles and presents them in a searchable format. My goal is to arm residents with knowledge so they can champion fact-based, rather than emotional, solutions.

Transportation

Tuesday, March 11, 2008

Crime on Public Transit in the USA

Table 2-34: Reports of Violent Crime, Property Crime, and Arrests by Transit Mode

Excel | CSV


1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005
REPORTED OFFENSES, VIOLENT CRIME










Homicidea 19 20 19 51 21 12 16 0 4 1 1
Motor bus 8 9 6 40 7 7 8 0 2 0 1
Commuter rail 1 1 4 1 3 1 2 0 1 0 0
Demand responsive 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Heavy rail 8 9 8 6 11 4 4 0 1 1 0
Light rail 2 1 1 4 0 0 2 0 0 0 0
Otherb 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Forcible rapec 29 38 31 47 27 37 37 65 25 24 23
Motor bus 11 13 10 16 14 10 7 40 2 7 11
Commuter rail 5 4 7 1 3 3 5 1 3 0 2
Demand responsive 0 0 2 4 1 0 1 0 0 1 0
Heavy rail 13 19 8 24 8 20 9 20 15 12 4
Light rail 0 2 4 2 0 4 2 4 5 4 6
Otherb 0 0 0 0 1 0 13 0 0 0 0
Robberyd 2,811 4,563 4,760 3,684 3,789 3,480 3,308 1,641 1,408 1,561 1,656
Motor bus 909 871 870 605 764 916 953 386 369 476 535
Commuter rail 181 242 187 133 183 144 144 89 29 44 107
Demand responsive 1 3 0 1 3 4 4 7 1 0 2
Heavy rail 1,490 3,164 3,394 2,686 2,588 2,174 1,966 864 762 676 630
Light rail 181 238 222 220 200 213 217 287 236 353 377
Otherb 49 45 87 39 51 29 24 8 11 12 5
Aggravated assaulte 2,701 3,084 3,105 2,314 2,448 2,217 2,286 2,560 1,638 1,330 1,332
Motor bus 1,941 1,677 1,294 1,186 1,268 1,070 1,146 1,383 957 774 760
Commuter rail 133 69 92 80 97 58 109 102 33 78 115
Demand responsive 6 13 13 13 14 16 8 24 4 3 6
Heavy rail 437 1,074 1,051 837 903 839 786 815 395 279 249
Light rail 157 199 143 170 135 208 187 227 220 184 177
Otherb 27 52 512 28 31 26 50 9 29 12 25
REPORTED OFFENSES, PROPERTY CRIME










Theftf 10,596 13,238 14,486 11,830 12,896 13,393 13,636 12,843 8,146 7,847 6,007
Motor bus 2,738 3,408 2,920 2,327 2,487 2,548 2,826 2,631 1,846 1,787 1,593
Commuter rail 2,238 2,262 2,345 2,021 1,872 2,139 2,001 1,912 563 730 1,224
Demand responsive 2 8 40 15 4 19 5 42 8 4 2
Heavy rail 4,625 6,794 8,321 6,807 7,789 7,856 7,807 7,158 4,802 4,396 2,204
Light rail 451 609 479 496 530 724 706 1,055 877 915 856
Otherb 542 157 381 164 214 107 291 45 50 15 128
Vehicle theftg 2,182 2,261 2,276 2,225 1,876 2,112 1,909 2,117 1,800 1,584 1,361
Motor bus 263 306 198 208 198 169 213 222 149 169 382
Commuter rail 253 125 262 470 272 367 308 152 67 63 54
Demand responsive 0 1 3 9 28 6 6 5 3 1 0
Heavy rail 1,536 1,694 1,630 1,234 1,203 1,285 1,143 1,426 1,267 966 490
Light rail 128 135 179 273 156 279 226 310 306 385 434
Otherb 2 0 4 31 19 6 13 2 8 0 1
Burglaryh 1,759 1,650 1,757 491 415 563 625 467 429 601 393
Motor bus 156 104 94 75 86 142 120 95 79 160 142
Commuter rail 178 177 260 217 170 191 188 78 83 96 112
Demand responsive 2 0 4 3 1 6 2 2 2 1 1
Heavy rail 1,367 1,278 1,343 110 91 82 119 95 53 40 25
Light rail 43 78 48 70 42 131 180 197 212 303 105
Otherb 13 13 8 16 25 11 16 0 0 1 8
Arsoni 63 96 75 60 53 50 44 23 23 42 27
Motor bus 29 67 33 21 15 24 12 8 9 23 11
Commuter rail 14 1 21 10 12 6 9 8 3 2 2
Demand responsive 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Heavy rail 14 22 16 27 20 16 15 4 10 7 2
Light rail 6 6 5 2 6 4 8 0 1 10 12
Otherb 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 0 0 0
REPORTED OFFENSES, ARRESTS










Other assaultsj 2,991 3,088 2,697 2,787 2,641 2,799 2,441 1,589 1,752 1,546 1,530
Motor bus 1,896 1,571 1,439 1,400 1,217 1,159 1,024 715 800 710 703
Commuter rail 144 106 140 122 164 142 156 72 37 136 181
Demand responsive 4 0 16 3 4 3 6 12 2 3 3
Heavy rail 645 932 881 898 888 1,085 999 662 750 572 462
Light rail 181 330 195 282 269 354 204 101 153 107 164
Otherb 121 149 26 82 99 56 52 27 10 18 17
Vandalismk 17,228 8,627 9,539 6,571 6,895 7,312 2,971 1,130 953 994 1,298
Motor bus 13,343 6,167 5,262 3,656 4,178 4,579 1,410 523 456 429 568
Commuter rail 1,071 309 659 778 507 264 293 145 9 122 276
Demand responsive 12 17 8 10 16 7 9 7 2 0 5
Heavy rail 1,157 1,339 1,128 1,067 1,222 1,200 984 190 220 201 209
Light rail 1,505 609 2,084 947 892 1,215 246 256 246 235 233
Otherb 140 186 398 113 80 47 29 9 20 7 7
Sex offensesl 664 803 1,047 962 1,009 844 798 N N N N
Motor bus 242 260 363 258 321 220 178 N N N N
Commuter rail 100 41 82 91 85 84 80 N N N N
Demand responsive 5 0 6 2 5 1 3 N N N N
Heavy rail 249 430 517 541 515 477 474 N N N N
Light rail 59 71 79 68 80 58 60 N N N N
Otherb 9 1 0 2 3 4 3 N N N N
Drug abuse violationsm 2,578 3,944 4,355 3,792 4,131 4,083 4,339 N N N N
Motor bus 1,037 2,122 1,970 1,414 1,705 1,443 1,179 N N N N
Commuter rail 303 393 477 495 303 196 389 N N N N
Demand responsive 1 0 15 21 8 1 2 N N N N
Heavy rail 1,078 1,130 1,530 1,550 1,606 1,915 2,015 N N N N
Light rail 151 298 336 271 501 520 739 N N N N
Otherb 8 1 27 41 8 8 15 N N N N
Driving under the influencen 466 129 205 176 204 194 284 N N N N
Motor bus 91 82 101 101 132 67 156 N N N N
Commuter rail 26 21 22 21 12 44 26 N N N N
Demand responsive 0 0 1 4 0 0 1 N N N N
Heavy rail 52 8 22 21 42 39 57 N N N N
Light rail 292 16 31 21 15 33 22 N N N N
Otherb 5 2 28 8 3 11 22 N N N N
Drunkennesso 10,479 6,921 8,632 12,643 11,487 6,087 8,033 N N N N
Motor bus 6,457 3,936 5,346 3,046 3,609 3,337 4,693 N N N N
Commuter rail 71 23 226 156 112 170 108 N N N N
Demand responsive 2 2 46 34 2 1 4 N N N N
Heavy rail 1,511 1,617 1,601 7,340 5,831 1,240 1,308 N N N N
Light rail 2,255 1,305 1,258 1,844 1,913 1,316 1,598 N N N N
Otherb 183 38 155 223 20 23 322 N N N N
Disorderly conductp 22,206 26,178 25,325 15,897 15,971 27,314 32,569 N N N N
Motor bus 4,681 5,025 6,978 4,521 5,471 3,745 3,253 N N N N
Commuter rail 810 1,085 1,399 1,525 797 706 607 N N N N
Demand responsive 5 8 47 5 5 6 2 N N N N
Heavy rail 15,258 19,183 15,309 8,227 7,856 21,087 27,626 N N N N
Light rail 1,164 800 1,177 1,408 1,767 1,737 1,046 N N N N
Otherb 288 77 415 211 75 33 35 N N N N
Trespassingq 3,362 3,497 7,444 6,049 3,670 4,303 4,597 2,278 4,126 3,162 3,220
Motor bus 928 604 1,225 1,283 1,065 1,329 1,040 937 1,262 1,115 1,138
Commuter rail 845 674 4,150 2,850 1,080 709 1,034 475 270 664 730
Demand responsive 0 0 2 2 0 0 0 13 2 1 12
Heavy rail 1,155 1,208 1,398 1,254 1,044 1,267 1,228 483 616 663 634
Light rail 400 653 463 443 436 985 1,278 349 1,951 699 677
Otherb 34 358 206 217 45 13 17 21 25 20 29
Fare evasionr 33,903 47,873 53,406 58,856 55,194 53,863 47,258 74,385 69,950 103,156 129,590
Motor bus 3,172 2,372 1,819 1,694 2,388 591 847 3,089 7,427 10,270 21,787
Commuter rail 140 334 310 204 167 179 566 3,849 3,873 73 194
Demand responsive 1 1 2 5 1 3 5 201 1 43 2
Heavy rail 8,247 39,957 46,106 40,350 35,033 28,933 24,852 20,469 16,459 25,775 15,901
Light rail 22,212 1,185 912 12,798 17,320 24,124 20,945 46,766 42,187 66,991 91,701
Otherb 131 4,024 4,257 3,805 285 33 43 11 3 4 5
Curfew and loitering lawss 1,878 872 1,960 1,161 3,022 3,630 3,391 N N N N
Motor bus 1,201 241 1,112 291 495 469 403 N N N N
Commuter rail 19 27 223 72 172 329 330 N N N N
Demand responsive 0 1 5 0 0 0 0 N N N N
Heavy rail 462 493 530 680 1,789 2,324 2,396 N N N N
Light rail 161 95 80 106 509 498 251 N N N N
Otherb 35 15 10 12 57 10 11 N N N N

KEY: N = data do not exist.

a The killing of one or more human beings by another. This includes murder, non-negligent manslaughter, and manslaughter by negligence.

b Other transit mode includes automated guideway, cable car, ferryboat, trolleybus, vanpool, monorail, inclined plane, and starting in 2001 the Alaska Railroad.

c The carnal knowledge of a female forcibly and against her will. This includes assault to rape or attempt to rape.

d The taking or attempting to take anything of value from the care, custody, or control of a person or persons by force or threat of force or violence and/or by putting the victim in fear. The use or threat of force includes firearms, knives or cutting instruments, other dangerous weapons (clubs, acid, explosives), and strong-arm techniques (hands, fists, feet).

e An unlawful attack by one person upon another for the purpose of inflicting severe or aggravated bodily injury. This type of assault usually is accompanied by the use of a weapon or by means likely to produce death or great bodily harm.

f The unlawful taking, carrying, leading, or riding away of property from the possession or constructive possession of another. This includes pocket-picking, purse-snatching, shoplifting, thefts from motor vehicles, thefts of motor vehicle parts and accessories, theft of bicycles, theft from buildings, theft from coin-operated devices or machines, and all other theft not specifically classified.

g The theft or attempted theft of a motor vehicle. A motor vehicle is a self-propelled vehicle that runs on the surface of land and not on rails. Examples of motor vehicles are automobiles, trucks, buses, motor cycles, and motor scooters.

h The unlawful entry of a structure to commit a felony or a theft. This includes offenses known locally as burglary (any degree), unlawful entry with intent to commit a larceny or felony, breaking and entering with intent to commit a larceny, housebreaking, safe-cracking, and all attempts at these offenses.

i To unlawfully and intentionally damage, or attempt to damage, any real or personal property by fire or incendiary device.

j An unlawful attack or attempt by one person upon another where no weapon was used or which did not result in serious or aggravated injury to the victim. This includes simple assault, minor assault, assault and battery, injury by culpable negligence, intimidation, coercion, hazing, and all attempts to commit these offenses.

k The willful or malicious destruction, injury, disfigurement, or defacement of any public or private property, real or personal, without consent of the owner or person having custody or control by cutting, tearing, breaking, marking, painting, drawing, covering with filth, or any other such means as may be specified by local law.

l Any sexual acts except forcible rape, prostitution, and commercialized vice. This includes offenses against chastity, common decency, morals, and the like, such as: adultery and fornication, buggery, incest, indecent exposure, indecent liberties, seduction, sodomy or crime against nature, statutory rape (no force), and all attempts to commit any of the above.

m Arrests requested based on the narcotics used. This includes all arrests for violations of state and local laws, specifically those relating to the unlawful possession, sale, use, growing, manufacturing, and making of narcotic drugs.

n The driving or operating of any vehicle or common carrier while drunk or under the influence of liquor or narcotics.

o Arrests for all offenses of drunkenness, which is the consumption of alcoholic beverages to the extent that one's mental faculties and physical coordination are substantially impaired. This includes drunkenness, drunk and disorderly, common or habitual drunkard, and intoxication.

p All charges of committing a breach of the peace. This includes, affray; unlawful assembly; disturbing the peace; disturbing meetings; disorderly conduct in state institutions, at court, at fairs, on trains or public conveyances, etc.; blasphemy, profanity, and obscene language; desecrating the flag; refusing to assist an officer; and all attempts to commit any of the above.

q To unlawfully enter land, a dwelling, or other real property.

r The unlawful use of transit facilities by riding without paying the applicable fare.

s All arrests for violations of local curfew or loitering ordinances where such laws exist.

NOTES

Data are from transit agencies in urbanized areas over 200,000 population and include patrons, employees, and others.

The figures for violent and property crime follow the FBI Uniform Crime Reporting Handbook, (Washington, DC: 1984) and are based on records of calls for service, complaints, and/or investigations. These figures are for reported offenses and do not reflect the findings of a court, coroner, jury, or decision of a prosecutor.

Security data was first reported to the Federal Transit Administration in 1995 and were not compiled for earlier years.

Beginning in 2002, data are no longer collected for the following offenses: sex offenses, drug abuse violations, driving under the influence, drunkeness, disorderly conduct, and curfew and loitering laws.

Analysts for the FTA believe the change in reporting requirements in 2002 may have resulted in unreliable data in that year. The reliability of reporting is believed to be much better in 2003 and is expected to improve in the future.

SOURCES

1995-2001: U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Transit Administration, National Transit Database, Internet site http://www.ntdprogram.com, as of May 6, 2003, tables 25-27 and similar tables in earlier editions.

2002-05: Ibid., personal communications June 14, 2007.

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