Lakeview: CTA crime focus of community meeting tonight; Train incidents up 104% in five years

Passengers wait for a train at the Belmont Red and Brown Line station in March 2018. | File

Lakeview residents tonight will raise their concerns about rising crime on the CTA with Chicago police and transit officials. The meeting at the 19th District (Town Hall) police station, 850 West Addison, will start at 7 p.m.

Alderman Tom Tunney (44th) arranged for representatives from the CTA and the police department’s transit unit to attended the meeting at the request of local residents, according to an invite posted to Facebook.

The get-together comes as just-released data from the city shows crime on CTA trains and platforms is up 104% since 2015 with last year showing a 5% increase. The increases are particularly troubling as the CTA has reported decreasing ridership in recent years.

It’s “time to demand a *true* mass-transit detail akin to what NYC and NYPD have done,” said the invite’s author.

The Lakeview meeting comes in the wake of a series of high-profile crimes on the city’s train system:

Some Lakeview residents expressed hope that tonight’s meeting will be different from previous community policing events.

“I’ve come away from some of them feeling very disillusioned,” one woman wrote in an online group. “The last one I went, it was very short and it seemed as though the panel just could not wait to get the crime stats [review] done so they could exit. Hoping this meeting will be very different. They need to feel the anger and concern in our lovely community about this!”

“I for one care passionately about this,” the woman continued. “I’m a huge fan of public transportation. I want to be able to use it without being in fear of being the victim of violence.”

Another resident shared a response that he received after he recently emailed Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot about CTA crime.

“I can assure you that I share your concern about crime on the CTA,” Lightfoot wrote. “It is a priority to address it forthwith. Thanks again and happy new year.”

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CWBChicago was created in 2013 by five residents of Wrigleyville and Boystown who had grown disheartened with inaccurate information that was being provided at local Community Policing (CAPS) meetings. Our coverage area has expanded since then to cover Lincoln Park, River North, The Loop, Uptown, and other North Side Areas. But our mission remains unchanged: To provide original public safety reporting with better context and greater detail than mainstream media outlets. Our editorial email address is news@cwbchicago.com