CTA crime clusters BY ALEX BORDENS | Tribune Graphics Since 2009, more than 18,000 crimes were reported on the CTA. Reports of crime were highest on the rail system, where 38.6 percent of all crimes were reported at rail platforms, though nearly 40 percent of those crimes were riders jumping turnstyles. On the bus system, violent crimes, such as robbery and battery, were clustered on the South and West sides, while thefts were more broadly distributed. Crimes at CTA rail stations From Jan. 1, 2009 to June 13 of this year, 3,943 crimes occurred at CTA stations, of which 38 percent were robberies or thefts. Red, Blue and Green Line stations had the largest number of overall crimes while riders boarding at Brown Line stations west of Southport experienced the least amount of crime. KEY: NUMBER OF CRIMES NOTE: Crimes outside the city boundary not included Jan. 1, 2009 - June 13, 2012
200 100 O’Hare 50 International Blue Line 25 Airport 94
90 Line Red 10 Brown Line
KIMBALL LOOP IRVING PARK Stations counted as one: Red Line: State/Lake, Methodology Monroe, Jackson, BELMONT Harrison To conduct this geographic analysis, data from the city of Chicago’s data 90 Blue Line: Clark/Lake, Washington, Monroe, portal was filtered for the location FULLERTON 94 description “CTA Platform.” Data Jackson, LaSalle/Van
were further filtered to exclude CICERO Buren, LaSalle deceptive practice incidents, or NORTH Green Line: cases where a rider jumped the Adams/Wabash, turnstyle, then plotted on a map CHICAGO 6 Madison/Wabash, using geographic coordinates Randolph/Wabash, Green Line State/Lake, Clark/Lake included with each record. A 5 1/8-mile radius was drawn around Brown, Orange, Pink Blue Line each CTA station, and any crime that and Purple lines: occurred within the circle was 290 1 Washington/Wells, attributed to the station. Roughly Quincy, LaSalle/Van Pink Line 93 percent (3,943) of non-deceptive NOTE: Crimes outside the Buren, Harold Washing- city boundary not included practice crimes that had coordinates ton Library-State/Van in their records fell within the Buren, Adams/Wabash, 1/8-mile threshold and are displayed Madison/Wabash, on the map and in the charts below. 31ST Randolph/Wabash, The city also tracks crime on CTA State/Lake, Clark/Lake trains, but the records could not 55 confidently be attributed to a station, as some crimes occurred between ARCHER Orange Line stations. 47TH
Station crimes by crime type Midway Green Line Jan. 1, 2009 - June 13, 2012 Airport 63RD Type Crimes % of all station crimes PULASKI KEDZIE Theft 1,008 25.6% WESTERN ASHLAND 3 Battery 622 15.8%
COTTAGE GROVE Robbery 489 12.4% 79TH 4 NOTE: Other crime types not shown.
87TH 90 Loop stations Line Red Because of the close proximity of stations in the Loop, both 95TH 2 elevated and subway, crimes could not confidently be attributed to individual stations. Similar limitations occurred at the Roosevelt subway and elevated stations. 94 HALSTED
57 PERCENT OF ALL LOOP CRIMES Jan. 1, 2009 - June 13, 2012 749 Theft 48.5% crimes Battery 11.7%
Robbery 10.9%
Stations with the most crimes With percentage of all crimes by type; Jan. 1, 2009 - June 13, 2012 95TH/ 1 ROOSEVELT* 2 DAN RYAN 3 69TH 4 79TH 5 PULASKI 6 CHICAGO Red, Orange, Green Red Line Red Line Red Line Green Line Red Line 217 crimes 199 crimes 166 crimes 151 crimes 139 crimes 108 crimes Theft: 14.7% Theft: 11.6% Theft: 14.5% Theft: 7. 3% Theft: 10.1% Theft: 29.6% Battery: 13.8% Battery: 20.1% Battery: 16.3% Battery: 19.2% Battery: 1.4% Battery: 13.0% Robbery: 10.6% Robbery: 5.5% Robbery: 9.6% Robbery: 6.0% Robbery: 3.6% Robbery: 7.4% *Elevated and subway Crimes on the CTA bus system Thefts on city buses and at bus stops were far more prevalent citywide and, unlike robbery and battery, occurred more frequently in areas along the north lake shore and downtown. Robbery and battery crimes occurred largely in the city’s South and West sides.
CRIMES ON A CTA BUS OR AT A BUS STOP Aggregated by police beat, Jan. 1, 2009 - June 13, 2012
Theft Battery Robbery 33.8% 25.2% 13.6% of all CTA bus- of all CTA bus- of all CTA bus- related crime related crime related crime KEY: KEY: KEY: 100 100 100 10 10 10
SOURCES: Tribune analysis of Chicago Police Department crime data and CTA ridership reports TRIBUNE