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Friday, February 10, 2012
Do public transit stops attract crime?
by Justin Cox, published on April 21, 2010 at 9:44 AM
Storyline: Public Transit
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Last week’s fatal stabbing of 68-year-old Bernice Nickson took place at a downtown Regional Transit stop.
While it would be hasty to let one incident determine RT’s entire reputation, the incident does beg the question: Are Regional Transit stops hubs for crime?
Alane Masui, assistant general manager of communications for Sacramento RT, said no. She said that when crimes take place on the street, transit stops are just easy landmarks to associate with the incident.
“It’s more of a perception than a reality,” she said. “When something occurs, people try to put the incident in context, and transit stops serve as regional landmarks.”
There are about 3,800 bus stops and 47 light rail stations in the Sacramento area. Masui’s point is that RT is all over the city, meaning it’s nearly impossible to draw a line determining where a “transit area” ends and a “non-transit area” begins. So a comparison of safety rates can’t really happen. It’s left to perception, not hard data.
Sgt. Norm Leong of the Sacramento Police Department said transit stops do attract crime, but he stopped short of singling them out as a problem.
“When you have people out walking, it creates a vulnerability,” he said. “But it’s no different than a nightclub closing or a concert getting out.”
He said there is an added danger now that so many people wear headphones in public, essentially putting their $200 smart phones on display for potential criminals to steal.
But Leong said criminals are foolish to break the law at RT stops because the stops have high-quality surveillance cameras. Bernice Nickson’s death was solved thanks in part to one such camera, which provided detectives a general description of the killer and his initial direction of travel after the stabbing.
Still, some riders believe crime is higher at bus and light rail stops. Daniel, a 23-year-old who declined to give his last name, is one of them.
“It’s the streets,” he said, sitting on his bike at the Eighth Street and O Street light rail stop. “I’ve seen people get jumped. At Power Inn I saw someone get his head beat in with a bat. And no one came for a while.”
"It's only at some stops," added Ashley, also 23, who said it has more to do with neighborhood than anything else.
"I'm comfortable," said 55-year-old Suzy Bonin, in reference to public transit as a whole. "At night ... it can get iffy."
Bonin says she might think twice before letting her teenage grandson ride alone, however.
According to a performance report on SacRT.com, there were 42 crimes on RT in January, which is about average for the past year. Those are felonies and misdemeanors, not minor infractions. RT’s worst month last year was March, with 74, and its best was December, with 36. The number of crimes January is down 11 from last year’s January total of 53.
Roger Dickinson, who is on the RT board of directors, agreed with Masui. He said transit stops are unfairly used as reference points for crimes that may actually have nothing to do with public transit.
“If someone gets stabbed a block away from a light rail station, the media still refers to the station,” he says. “Even if it had nothing to do with the genesis of the crime.”
So, are the stops dangerous?
Regional Transit said no -- it’s just perception. The Police said yes, but no more so than a nightclub or a concert. But at least RT stops have surveillance.
Leong said the whole discussion triggers a certain level of paranoia. But RT is still the best option for many commuters, and its shortcomings are just the price riders pay for the convenience of light rail and buses.
“What’s the alternative?" Leong said. "Don’t walk anywhere?”
- Photos by Brandon Darnell
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These light rail advocates advised that stations needed to be small urban centers where some riders lived, worked and shopped and were open daily from the early hours until the late. Businesses which could have located there were coffee houses, restaurants, fast food, dry cleaners, variety stores, maybe clubs or bars, etc. that nearby residents could walk to and riders patronize on their way to work and on the way home. Parking lots were to be at the rear of the station and not the dominate feature of the station.
Yes, they recognized that in some cases to accommodate the urban concept would be an added cost for land acquisition but as they pointed out, the business and residential rentals or condo purchases were an investment which would eventually pay for itself, if not provide revenue later.
BART finally joined some of the east coast station designs with busy retail and other businesses by realizing such a design could help BART's success, was good for businesses and improved safety--although a couple such stations are less than hoped for.
There's no report -- unless you have one -- that she was attacked "at a bus stop." There's no report that the crime was caught on film -- only that RT and mall cameras had images of the man who is the alleged murderer. If there are such reports, can you link them here?
Ever been to "8th St. near Capitol Mall"? It's barely populated at any time of day or night.
Roger Dickinson gave you the answer:
"He said transit stops are unfairly used as reference points for crimes that may actually have nothing to do with public transit."
Unless you have actual evidence of any connection, this article seems to hinge on unfounded assumptions that only contribute to the paranoia mentioned by Mr. Leong.
I'm not sure what your intentions were when you wrote this article, but I feel you are mostly off base. I knew Bernice well, saw her several times a week during my shifts driving light rail. I'm sad over what happened, and I can offer no explanation other than the fact that some people these days could care less about another persons life.
Edited to remove a stupid comment I made about the author of the main article.
This is citizen journalism. Justin actually did some REPORTING, which many, many community contributors don't do. He balanced different opinions, and came to a conclusion.
Everyone is entitled to their opinions here, and I welcome the comments. But in MY opinion, Justin's hard work deserves more respect and less name-calling. He is doing what we ask community contributors to do: Have more than just an opinion. He did that better than most.
"Last week’s fatal stabbing of 68-year-old Bernice Nickson took place at a downtown Regional Transit stop."
"While it would be hasty to let one incident determine RT’s entire reputation, the incident does beg the question: Are Regional Transit stops hubs for crime?" "
This is how the writer starts off, with presumptions that have not been verified. I respectfully asked about that in my comment. Was she stabbed at an RT stop? Was she waiting for a train or bus at that hour? Isn't it "hasty" to project that she was attacked because of proximity to the RT stop? Don't these facts matter when the premise is being used to construct such an artful article and to interview authorities for "the larger story"?
Capitol Mall is a near dead zone after dark, aside from a few pedestrians, cyclists or skaters; and homeless people looking for a place to sleep, especially during winter when warm air vents out of the ground near the sidewalks.
Do the trains run at 4:00 a.m.? What is the possible connection between a homeless woman being attacked in an isolated office district and the fact that there is a transit stop there? It doesn't make any sense.
Without any feasible connection to the RT stop, one might as well ask "Are newspaper boxes hubs for crime?" "Are stoplights hubs for crime?" "Are nighttime uninhabited office blocks hubs for crime?"
I ride public transit, and I usually do it during the day. The only thing is I go home at night sometimes, and I feel unsafe. I read in a News & Review article that women are mostly targeted at night, and that scares me. Yes, there are tactics to use when defending yourself, if need be. However, I think there should be more security at all light rail stations & well lit bus stops that are used more frequently. I see security all day long at most stops, even on the train itself. What sucks is selective stops have security, such as the high traffic ones like 16th station, while the stops that have fewer patrons have 0 security. If they can increase the fare and take away some routes, at least secure our safety by increasing the security.