Crime on Metro Transit buses, light-rail and its property fell 25 percent in the final quarter of last year compared to the beginning of 2023, the police chief said Monday. But crime throughout last year was up 32 percent from 2022.

Some of it could be attributed to more people being around to report crime vs. during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to Metro Transit. Ridership rose about 15 percent last year compared to 2022.

“We need the people to return (to riding transit) — we’re safer in numbers,” Metro Transit Police Chief Ernest Morales III said Monday. The transit service also has been working to increase its own presence with the hope that will “instill confidence in our returning passengers and more importantly” quell disturbances, Morales said.

The most recent high-profile case was Saturday night, when a 27-year-old man was shot and wounded during a robbery on a Green Line train in downtown St. Paul. No one had been arrested as of Monday afternoon.

Metro Transit recorded 7,886 crimes last year (of which 1,174 were counted as more serious types, such as robbery, assault, sex offense and theft). There was a total of 5,960 crimes reported in 2022 (of which 1,005 were more serious) and 4,628 in 2021 (of which 924 were more serious).

“We’re doing a lot of work to improve public safety and the perception of safety,” said Metro Transit General Manager Lesley Kandaras. “But we also have to show that work and so that continues to be a focus of ours … not just making these strides, but working to communicate those strides and continuing to engage with our customers to address their concerns.”

In addition to having Metro Transit police officers, the agency has started contracting for supplemental security officers “at some key locations,” Kandaras said.

Metro Transit has community service officers, who are law enforcement students working part time, and they began in December carrying out routine fare inspections and issuing administrative citations. By the end of this month, Metro Transit anticipates starting field training for Transit Rider Investment Personnel (TRIP) agents, not officers, “so this will be yet again another layer of presence on our system,” Kandaras said. They are trained to carry out fare inspections and assist customers.

Last year, the Transit Service Intervention Project began, with the leadership of Metro Transit police department’s Homeless Action Team, and it has grown to now include contracts with 10 community-based organizations who are out “conducting outreach and also helping connect some people in need to services,” Kandaras said.

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