Can Late-night Transit Reduce Crime?

Imagine that it’s 5 p.m. on a Tuesday. Thousands of people are filing out of the office towers downtown. There isn’t a bus to be found. The LRT isn’t running. Dozens of people are on every corner, waving their arms frantically, trying to hail one of the few cabs that zip by. But every cab looks to have its lights off — they’ve already got fares.

Well, that kind of describes Jasper Avenue (and Whyte Avenue, for that matter) at 2 a.m. Saturday.

Add up the capactity of Jasper Avenue's bars and there's room for 10,000 patrons. Add 10,000 more spots on Whyte Avenue. Now, imagine what it’s like when people clear out at closing time and there’s no way to get home. The bus routes are done for the night and the LRT is down. People get frustrated. Businessowners keep patrons outside, some of them inebriated and sometimes in unforgiving weather.

As frustrations boil, the likelihood of fights, arguments and incidents increase, says Nicole Chapdelaine, coordinator of Edmonton's Public Safety Compliance Team.

“We call it the late-night rush hour,” says Angela Turner, the program manager of Responsible Hospitality Edmonton Sustainable Development. “We wouldn’t dream of not having transit available at 5 p.m. But that’s what we have between 2 and 3 a.m.”

Is there a link between increased late-night transit and crime reduction? You bet.

“We want to get people off straightaway and on their way home,” says Chapdelaine. “There’s less competition for space, less commotion in the street, less fighting for the girl, less fighting for cabs.”

Improving late-night transit could not only help the city be a more livable place and cut down on drinking and driving, it could stop crime before it happens. It’s a hot topic with Turner’s group, which sees the city work with bar owners and the Alberta Gaming and Liquor Commission, along with police and fire services.

But, while committees have these discussions, there isn’t a real impetus for change unless members of the public chime in. When votes are on the line, politicians listen.

And, not only could it improve Edmonton's quality of life, but also reduce crime.

It’s unfair to say that the thousands of people looking to get home are all trouble-making drunks. Truth is, most are people who want to enjoy the city's nightlife. Yes, some will drink excessively, but that doesn’t make them dangerous.

Negative confrontations can be fuelled by alcohol, however, and those opportunities increase the more you keep inebriated people waiting to get home.

Unfortunately for everyone, getting a cab in Edmonton isn’t like getting a cab in Manhattan. They don’t line the streets.

Responsible Hospitality Edmonton says studies show that late-night cab drivers tend to pick up females or groups that have females in them over men.

Edmonton Transit System has just launched its new Night Ride service, a pilot project that goes till April. On Friday and Saturday nights, ETS service runs from Whyte Avenue to Southgate from 1:30 a.m. to 3:30 a.m. It will be interesting to see the effects it has on crime.

But, what about people going north, east or west? And, for those going south, what will the riders do when they get to Southgate? ETS states that the transit centre will be closed, so there is no access to washrooms. Taxis are promised to be waiting — but how many? And, if a rider wants a taxi, why not try to fight for one on Whyte Avenue and not worry about getting halfway home by bus?

Is the city solving a problem, or simply moving it?

It’s not feasible to turn the LRT into a late-night ride, but a real transit system needs to have a major arterial routes running at night, like Toronto’s Blue Night routes. At the very least though, the city is cognizant of the problem and is working toward a resolution.