CHICAGO (CBS) – Robberies, stab wounds and shootings are among the violent attacks reported in the CTA system only in the last month.
It is a response to the fight against these crimes unarmed guards? The city thinks so.
According to CBS 2’s German Terry, CTA racers say they feel like they’re watching their backs – on buses or trains – and the Chicago Transit Office is waiting for that. guards keep an eye on all the problems.
But will that be enough?
As this year, crime at the KTA has risen by 40 percent. We have heard from many riders who have fallen victim – including Mimi Sarnwhich was attacked on the Jackson Red Line platform in downtown in early January.
“Whatever they do, the CTA doesn’t work,” Sarn said.
After riding the CTA since the 80s, Sarn said last month that she was not ready to give up completely.
“But‘ L ’, until there’s police downstairs or something, I won’t go there,” Sarn said in March. “It just doesn’t feel safe.”
Extra police officers do not come. Instead, the CTA is attracting what they say is ultimately 300 unarmed guards to saturate buses and trains.
Many security guards are being trained in de-escalation and conflict resolution.
“If there’s anyone they need to teach de-escalation, it’s their own operators,” said Keith Hill, president of Amalgamated Transit Union Local 41.
The CTA has indicated how many guards will arrive in just a few days letter from a majority in the U.S. Senate, Dick Durbin and Jesus Chui MP Garcia (Illinois), who insisted that “more needs to be done to protect frontline workers and CTA passengers, given the alarming rise in CTA crime.”
Hill still wants armed officers.
“It’s a world-class city, world-class transit, and they deserve better,” he said.
Concerns aren’t just about violence against CTA riders. Earlier this month, a CTA officer was pushed onto Red Line’s rails the Granville stop at Edgewater.
The crews were forced to turn off the electricity on the railway to save the worker. No one has been arrested, but we know there are videos of the attackers.
CBS 2 clicked on CTA to release a video featuring. Our request for open recordings was rejected, claiming that “disclosure of this video will show the position of the cameras.”
“More importantly – where do you have the cameras, or the protection of the people who take away our system?” Said Hill.
This year, 432 violent incidents have occurred in buses, trains, platforms and CTA stations, with robbery and theft predominating among the crimes.
