All of the TTC stations are manned when the subway system is operating. I once caught the last train on the Danforth line and it was delayed getting to my stop. They were locking up the station when I arrived and they asked me why I was in the station and I told them that the train was late. No big deal really but at 2 am the streetcar does not stop in the station (Dundas st West) as the front doors are locked (there is nothing to stop you from walking in on the pavement where the buses and streetcars enter as there are no gates) and the 24-hour streetcar picks up at the corner of Bloor and Dundas just outside. The main thing is, there are no "no go" stations in Toronto no matter what the time of day or night. There are the occasional jumpers but crime on the TTC is almost non-existent.
I lack figures to prove it, of course, but I will bet that PATH is the very safest system largely using underground and elevated stations anywhere in the combined areas of North America and Euopre, although Toronto may also be a contender.
"No Go Zones" are areas that police responce is non-existant or takes a long time to respond. Parts of Chicago, Detroit and Cleveland fall into this realm. Even isolated suburban areas like parts of Columbus OH and Indianapolis can be "No Go Zones"s ee- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No-go_area. Watch yourself around lonley isolated subway stations like most of the South Shore Stations
There is so much going on in Cleveland as far as crime goes they should do a CSI series just for that town be safe when railfanning out there and be aware of where U park your car.
trackrat888The shooting of the young man in Cleveland by police was at West Park a heavy rail station. The young man was told to put the BB gun away by several passengers
You're confusing two stories, I hope not intentionally. The West Park shooting was a robbery, on December 9th. It did not involve a BB gun mistaken for a real one, nor was it 'by police'.
Security cameras that are monitored can put whatever emergency service that is required on the platform quickly. A uniform hanging around on a lightly used platform, or riding the train, just in case, is a very expensive proposition. It takes 4 1/2 men to provide 1 man 24/7. Most light rail systems do not provide for movement from car to car. You are at just as much risk waiting for a bus. It is not possible to eliminate all of life's risks.
Dave
Lackawanna Route of the Phoebe Snow
Security cameras are better than nothing, but in the end all they do is record the incident. A masked bad guy or a deranged one isn't likely to be concerned with cameras.
A uniform on the platform is the best solution.
PATH is solving the problem with complete 24 hour 7 day TV camera survailance of all station public areas, under installation. Of course, it is a small system compared to NYCTA and CTA, but this should be possible there too. Monitoring is at the building at Journal Sq., and the Port Authority Police Hq. can respond quickly to any incident seen.
Which shooting do you mean? The one about which I remember reading was Tamir Rice http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2014/11/24/cleveland-police-kill-12-year-old-boy-wielding-bb-gun-that-looked-like-a-semi-automatic-pistol/
"On Saturday afternoon, 12-year-old Tamir Rice was sitting on a swing outside a recreation center in Cleveland, wearing a camouflage hat and hiding a BB gun in his waistband."
All accounts I've read said it was at a playground, not at a transit station.
Patrick Boylan
Free yacht rides, 27' sailboat, zip code 19114 Delaware River, get great Delair bridge photos from the river. Send me a private message
The Cleveland rapid system is a hybrid of heavy and light rail. The heavy rail high platform rail was built and planned for 50 mile subway system that was never completed. The Shaker Rapid or light rail was a PCC operation where the operater collected fares
CSSHEGEWISCH, the original post mentions subways, which in my neighborhood, Philadelphia and the US northeast, had long meant staffed anytime the subway ran. I don't think many people consider the South Shore or IC, or any other Chicago area suburban railroads, to be subways.
The trend to unmanned stations in off-peak periods is hardly new. In my dim and distant high school days, I can recall that ticket agents at most South Shore and IC stations were on duty for the morning rush and were generally off-duty by noon with no agent on duty at all on weekends.
The fantasy of the decade:
If only I carried a gun I would never be the victim of a crime.
Phoebe Vet Do you think the ticket clerk is going to run out and protect you?
Do you think the ticket clerk is going to run out and protect you?
Perception is reality. If people perceive public transit in the United States is not safe, they will not ride it irrespective of the statistics.
I know people in Dallas and Austin who will not use public transit because they believe it is not safe. Moreover, they don't want to associate with what they perceive to be the lower class people who use it.
I have had some bad happenings on public transit, although I have not been the vicitim of a physical crime. I use the DART light rail system, as well as its buses, during the day, but I would not ride it late at night.
I am 75, and I am a target. When I go to Dallas for the symphony, I catch a cab back to my hotel.
Phoebe Vet You will probably find that the unattended stations have video surveilance. That seems to the way the systems are evolving.
You will probably find that the unattended stations have video surveilance. That seems to the way the systems are evolving.
I will feel so safe getting mugged or killed knowing that the incident will be on video. [/sarcasm]
Never too old to have a happy childhood!
Lynx Blue Line in Charlotte.
There are cameras on every platform and every light rail vehicle.
which system in the photograph?
closed-circuit tv survaillance can help solve the problem and its installation is long overdue. The state-of-the-art should include selectable audio pickup as well.
I suspect those token sellers will eventually have to be replaced by security personnel. It's probably easier for municipalities to get money for security, than for operating subsidy.
I have gotten off at subway stations in the outer limits of the NY Subway system and Chicago as well as places like Baltimore late night after a long day of railfanning and I know and have some close calls. The incendent in Cleveland on a afternoon between rush hours happened at a station that used to have token clerks but are now unmanned. I have noticed a trend away from manned stations on amtrak,commuter railroads and subway systems and it makes me uncomfortable not just for me but like on the South Shore and the IC lines scared for some poor nurse who is getting off the late train who is a walking target.
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