Calgary Transit

[InfrastructureEnthusiast]

Increased train frequency could definitely improve safety as well, its one of the advantages I've noted of skytrain type systems over slow pseudo-streetcars.

Of course an even better solution is removing the problem altogether!

300 million can buy a lot of one way plane tickets to Ottawa for repeat offenders, with more than enough left over to build halfway houses in neighborhoods where judges live.

Until attitudes in those two communities change, the situation on the ground won't.

 

[trtcttc]

Increased train frequency could definitely improve safety as well, its one of the advantages I've noted of skytrain type systems over slow pseudo-streetcars.

Of course an even better solution is removing the problem altogether!

300 million can buy a lot of one way plane tickets to Ottawa for repeat offenders, with more than enough left over to build halfway houses in neighborhoods where judges live.

Until attitudes in those two communities change, the situation on the ground won't.

There's criminals which I agree the criminal justice system has failed. But there's a large population of homeless, drug addicted people that aren't necessarily violent, but volatile. You can convict them for crimes they commit, but not for potential to randomly punch someone in the face.

 

[Surrealplaces]

NY and Toronto both did security surges after elevated crime levels after Covid. The effectiveness of that was rather dubious, with most of the decline occurring naturally. The best way to get the bad element out is to increase ridership. Or at a minimum they don't create the feeling of being unsafe as a half empty train.

Increased ridership would help, but it's not something that can happen with the wave of a wand, it takes time to build ridership, and with it's current reputation or public perception that's not going to happen easily. I think the extra security is needed now even if might not be a long term solution. It can't hurt to spend extra money protecting a large investment that's already suffering from a public perception of not being safe. And not all of it is perception.

 

[Surrealplaces]

I think investing in frequency helps here a lot, perhaps even more than additional security in some cases.

Just having more buses and trains out there spreads people out - it means fewer people are likely to be stuck on the same vehicle as the occasional person with anti-social behaviour. It also changes an individual's risk calculus - I won't risk going onto the train with a sketchy looking situation if the next one is in 5 minutes, I might risk it if the next train is 20 minutes away.

By reducing the chance of exposure to anti-social stuff, by simple having more capacity - not only do I get around faster due to more frequency, I also perceive less anti-social behaviour at all, because I don't spend as much time on the system, and I just don't see it because it's more spread out (even if total amount of anti-social stuff remains the same).

Increased frequency would help. I don't know what the costs would be for increased frequency, but it's something that could be looked at. Extra security isn't a long term solution, but a bit of money invested into extra security wouldn't hurt. I don't think it would need to be a lot of money, and could help sway public perception of its safety, which could help boost ridership, and go hand in hand with increased frequency.