Sacramento transit crime dropped in 2015, agency reports

Crime on Sacramento Regional Transit buses and trains dropped for the second consecutive year in 2015, the agency announced Monday.

The agency reported 60 thefts on the countywide transit system, including at light-rail stations, down from 67 in 2014 and 92 in 2013. The agency’s police services division made arrests in 46 percent of the cases, spokeswoman Alane Masui said in a news statement.

RT officials said cellphones and tablet devices were the main objects stolen.

“The lower crime numbers and high arrest clearance rate can be partially attributed to the benefit of a robust surveillance camera system that covers RT’s stations and all RT trains and buses,” Masui wrote.

Norm Leong, head of the transit agency’s police services, said RT has begun doing more active, real-time monitoring of its video camera feeds and has quickened its efforts to distribute camera images taken of criminals.

The RT police services division is authorized for 29 officers assigned full-time from the Sacramento Police Department, the Sacramento County Sheriffs Department and Folsom Police Department. The agency now has only 24 officers on duty, however, because of retirements, injuries and vacancies.

RT has taken criticism over the past year from business leaders and others for not providing enough policing, not doing enough to prevent riders without tickets on trains, and for a lack of cleanliness on trains and at stations.

The agency launched efforts last year to address those issues. That includes plans to increase fare inspections. The agency also recently added to the list of behaviors that are not allowed on buses and trains, including playing music that is audible to other passengers.

Masui said RT is working to introduce a mobile app this year that will make it easier for riders to report nuisance behavior, crime, suspicious people and other issues. RT riders now can text tips to the agency’s police services at 67283 and beginning the message with “sacrt.”

This story was originally published January 11, 2016 at 3:56 PM with the headline "Sacramento transit crime dropped in 2015, agency reports."