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[CNJRoss]

Mayor of Chicago news release:

 

Mayor Emanuel, CTA Announce Launch of New Safe and Secure Program to

 

Program will Upgrade 3,800 System Cameras to High-Definition and Add 1,000 New Cameras; $33 million of Improvements to be Funded by Innovative Ride-Hailing Fee

 

Mayor's Press Office

 

 

Mayor Rahm Emanuel and CTA President Dorval R. Carter, Jr. today announced the new Safe and Secure program, a multi-faceted effort to increase safety across the CTA system and provide a more secure, comfortable traveling experience.

 

“In Chicago we are investing in a world-class public transportation system that provides a comfortable, safe and secure experience for transit riders,” Mayor Emanuel said. “Chicago is the first city in the nation to create a ride-hailing fee dedicated to transit, making it possible to continue to invest in the latest technology and improvements that enhance commuting and improve the quality of life in our city.”

 

Beginning later this year CTA will add 1,000 new cameras and upgrade more than 3,800 older-model cameras throughout the system. Additionally, new lighting, repairs and other improvements will enhance safety at all 146 CTA rail stations. New cameras will also be installed at more than 100 CTA bus turnaround locations and video monitors will be added to all CTA rail stations to aid personnel in monitoring station and customer activity.

 

“Ensuring every CTA customer and employee is safe on our transit system is a top priority for me,” said CTA President Carter. “I thank the Mayor and City Council for their support of transit and for recognizing the vital role it plays in Chicago. The Safe and Secure initiative allows us to build on the success of our past efforts and further improve the commuting experience for our customers.”

 

CTA’s security camera network has doubled in size since 2011. The cameras, found at every rail station and on every bus and train, have been an important tool to help Chicago Police identify crime suspects and detect crime patterns. All of CTA’s buses and trains have multiple cameras. The newest buses have 10-14 cameras per vehicle depending on size.

 

Additionally, CTA has worked closely with the Chicago Police Department’s Public Transportation Unit to strengthen and deploy strategies to fight crime that include expanded police patrols, rail saturation missions and undercover operations. Since June 2011, CTA cameras have aided Police in the investigation, arrest and charging of more than 1,300 individuals.

 

"CTA has been a valuable partner to CPD in making our public transportation system a safe option for Chicagoans and visitors to the city," Chicago Police Superintendent Eddie Johnson said. "The high definition cameras made possible by the Safe and Secure program will further strengthen CPD's use of technology to make CTA stations, busses, and trains even more secure."

 

CTA’s Safe and Secure is funded by a new, innovative fee on ride-hailing services championed by Mayor Emanuel, the first such fee in the country dedicated to public transportation improvements.

For more information on CTA security efforts, visit transitchicago.com/security.

 

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[CNJRoss]

WLS-TV Chicago 2/27/18:
 

CTA adding 1,000 new cameras, improving lighting at stations as part of security plan

 

CHICAGO (WLS) -- The CTA is planning safety improvements across the city, ranging from new cameras to better lighting.

Technology is going to play a big part in the upgrades and the city hopes it makes CTA riders feel safer.

Tuesday, Mayor Rahm Emanuel announced the Safe and Secure program at a Pink Line station at Central Park. What the plan will do is add 1,000 new cameras and upgrade 3,800 older cameras across the CTA system to high definition. New cameras will be installed at more than 100 bus turnaround stations.

"It is going to be about just shy of 5,000, about 4,800, high definition cameras that are going to be installed throughout the system of the CTA, every line will have it in the stations," Emanuel said.

 

Continue here.

[CNJRoss]

WMAQ-TV Chicago, IL 5/20/18:
 

CTA to Install More Than 600 New HD Security Cameras Across Chicago

 

 

More than 600 new high-definition cameras will be added to the CTA rail system, announced Mayor Rahm Emanuel and CTA President Sunday—an effort to modernize and increase safety.

 

“The CTA is in the midst of an unprecedented modernization, from new tracks, railcars and switches to new security technology to support safe commutes for every resident on every rail line,” said Mayor Emanuel.

 

Emanuel and CTA President Dorval R. Carter, Jr. announced that the new HD cameras, along with lighting improvements along the Green Line, kick off the first of several phases of the Safe & Secure program.

 

Continue here w/video report.

[CNJRoss]

Metro Magazine, 10/30/18:
 

Chicago Transit adds 500 cameras to upgrade security efforts

 

 

The Chicago Transit Authority announced the installation of nearly 500 new security cameras.

 

SNIP

 

In the last year, CTA and Office of Emergency Management and Communications (OEMC) installed nearly 500 cameras in and around rail stations along the Red, Blue, and Brown lines as part of a multi-faceted, collaborative effort to further improve public safety. Four hundred of these are HD.

 

More here.

[CNJRoss]

CTA news release:

 

Mayor Emanuel, CTA Continue Investments to Improve Transit Experience

 

October 29, 2018

 

First-ever public art and architecture book, three new Chicago Architecture Center tours and continued upgrades of security camera network are among several recent projects to benefit customers

 

 

Mayor Rahm Emanuel and Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) President Dorval R. Carter, Jr. today announced major milestones on two ways CTA is working to improve the transit experience - the installation of nearly 500 new security cameras and a new coffee table book and Chicago Architecture Center tours focused exclusively on art and architecture in CTA stations.

 

“CTA customers expect and deserve the kind of investments that benefit their daily commutes and boost their overall riding experience,” said Mayor Emanuel. “Public art and security are two of the many tools we’re using to keep CTA the option of choice for Chicago commuters.”

 

In the last year, CTA and Office of Emergency Management and Communications (OEMC) installed nearly 500 cameras in and around rail stations along the Red, Blue and Brown lines as part of a multi-faceted, collaborative effort to further improve public safety. 400 of these are HD cameras as part of its Safe & Secure program – a $33 million, multi-year investment funded by the Mayor’s innovative ride-hailing fee.

 

Safe & Secure will add 1,000 new cameras and upgrade more than 3,000 older-model cameras throughout the system to the latest-generation high-definition. The program also includes new lighting, repairs and enhancements to safety at all 145 CTA rail stations. New cameras will also be installed at more than 100 CTA bus turnaround locations, and video monitors will be added to CTA rail stations to aid personnel in monitoring station and customer activity.

 

Public safety officials from CPD, OEMC and CTA have worked together to strategically deploy new street-level cameras near CTA’s subway and elevated stations. So far this year, OEMC has overseen the installation of 95 new HD surveillance cameras near the entrances of the Grand and Chicago Blue Line, Sedgwick Brown Line, and the Clark/Division, Lake, Grand, Jackson and Monroe Red Line stations. OEMC will continue to work with the CTA and CPD to support safety enhancements to CTA’s system in 2019.

 

The Mayor and CTA also unveiled Elevated: Art and Architecture of the Chicago Transit Authority – a new book celebrating and chronicling the extensive collection of public art and significant architectural contributions across the nation’s second largest transit agency.

 

Elevated, CTA’s first-ever collection of art and architecture projects, is part of Mayor Emanuel’s and President Carter’s shared vision to expand and celebrate public art across Chicago’s bus and rail system, while also enriching the experience and minds of those who travel the system each day.

 

In conjunction with the book, CTA has also partnered with the Chicago Architecture Center (CAC) to create two new, ‘L’ tours that showcase select CTA station art and architectural details featured in the new book. These new tours, one covering Chicago’s South Side and the other the North Side, will be offered from the CAC in early 2019. The new tours will join the popular, current CAC ‘L’ tour Elevated Architecture: Downtown ‘L’ Train.

 

“The CTA’s ‘L’ trains are as indelible a part of the Chicago experience as its architecture, public art and rich, diverse neighborhoods,” said Lynn Osmond, CAC President. “The CAC is eager to bring all four elements together, for Chicagoans and visitors, in our two new tours that will reveal Chicago’s gems that are hidden in plain sight.”

 

“You can be a lifelong Chicagoan who has traveled CTA buses and trains for decades, and not seen or been aware of all the architectural details and art installations featured across our system” said CTA President Carter. “A trip on any of our buses or trains can become immersive and layered, providing you with a one-of-a-kind experience that is inspiring, educational and exciting.”

 

The two programs follow the Mayor’s announcement last week of $5M to support his plan to foster transit-oriented development on high-capacity bus corridors and a new pilot program to add digital information screens on CTA buses.

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[CNJRoss]

Security Today, 1/22/19:
 

Chicago Transit Authority Upgrades Security Cameras Following Crime Spike

 

A significant increase in crime surrounding Chicago's rail system leads to upgraded surveillance cameras.

 

 

The Chicago Transit Authority is in the process of installing a number of high-definition security cameras across the rail system following a number of incidence of criminal activity. 

 

The cameras are part of the city's Safe & Secure program that was announced by Mayor Rahm Emanuel earlier this year. The program looks to increase the safety measures throughout the CTA system to promote a more security travel experience.

 

At the end of 2018, CTA had installed nearly 500 cameras across the Red, Blue and Brown lines, according to a press release.

 

Continue here.

[CNJRoss]

Mass Transit, 4/5/19:
 

CTA rail system now 100 percent equipped with HD cameras

 

CTA expands its subway station camera coverage by more than 50 percent following the upgrade of 660 cameras and the installation of an additional 340 cameras.

 

Eye in the sky: CTA's rail system is 100 percent HD camera equipped.

CTA

 

All Chicago Transit Authority rail system is now fully equipped with high-definition surveillance cameras following installation of 1,000 cameras throughout the Red and Blue line subway stations. CTA and the city of Chicago called the HD cameras a valuable tool to help deter and solve crimes. 

 

“Upgrading CTA’s surveillance network with state-of-the-art, high definition cameras will help ensure the safety and security of all passengers who rely on our bus and rail system to get to work, school and to destinations across our great city," said Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel.

 

SNIP

 

CTA says its camera network is among the most comprehensive of transit agency surveillance networks. It has more than doubled in size since 2011 and now encompasses 32,000 cameras systemwide.

 

More here.