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Parking facilities were among the first facilities where of design and oversight of parking facilities, those who are
transit systems relied on video cameras to assure patrons of victimized in these areas are likely to file claims or lawsuits
their own safety and the safety of their vehicles. Reflecting against the agency responsible for the facility. Based on the
the recognition that patron fears relating to parking facili- doctrine of "foreseeability"--that it could be anticipated
ties had a major impact on ridership, three of the field tests that something would occur in a particular location if left
undertaken by Interactive Elements Inc. for a TCRB study unattended or unprotected--such lawsuits generally allege
of transit police/security deployments, Guidelines for the negligence based on such factors as an insufficient number
Effective Use of Uniformed Transit Police and Security Per- of police/security officers, a lack of patrols, or an absence of
sonnel, pertained to parking lots. In those tests, MARTA such common security measures as emergency telephones,
implemented bicycle patrol by its police officers to enhance adequate lighting and signage, and electronic video surveil-
visibility at a large heavy rail station and bus transfer point lance. Surveillance policies may be further questioned as to
that had been the scene of thefts of and from autos. Employ- whether the cameras are monitored in real time, which may
ing a different strategy, Metrolink worked with the Cla- present issues if patrons believe that help is on the way when
remont, California, Police Department to assign a local, that is not so (Jones 2006).
nonsworn uniformed officer in a marked patrol car to a post
in the parking lot. In both tests, crime dropped.
STORAGE YARDS, OTHER YARDS, AND
The LIRR field test for the same study was an early ADMINISTRATIVE AREAS
example of the use of surveillance technology in conjunc-
tion with covert policing tactics. Based on patron surveys in Surveillance technology was heavily employed in areas in
the early 1990s, the LIRR had learned that customers were which equipment is stored or in administrative areas. In
concerned about parking lot security and auto-related thefts. both situations, more than half the respondents (26 for stor-
This led to a number of its police officers being assigned to age and other yards and 28 in employee and administrative
these outdoor lots, which resulted in an increase in arrests areas) indicated they relied on surveillance systems to safe-
for either theft of the autos themselves or thefts from the guard these areas and, in some cases, to monitor employee
vehicles. By 1993, in response to legislative hearings that activities.
stemmed from the December 7, 1993, shooting on an LIRR
train that resulted in six deaths, parking lot security became Onboard surveillance in operator/cab areas remains
an issue. The importance of parking lot security to patrons controversial, but use of video cameras in other employee
was evident; even thought the shooting occurred on the train administrative areas has become commonplace. A number
and parking or parking lots were not involved, Given the of reasons can be posited for this. Cameras in employee
opportunity to comment on their safety and security con- areas require no technological features different from those
cerns LIRR patrons chose to focus on something far more required in other industries. But cameras in yards and other
mundane than the shooting. outdoor facilities may require greater planning and the need
to include special features to protect the cameras themselves
From the hearings, then-LIRR Police Chief John J. from damage or vandalism. Placement of cameras in yards
O'Connor found that the stereotypical "Dashing Dan" was and other employee-related areas can also be seen as provid-
now also "Dashing Dianna"--40% of the primarily business ing not only oversight of employee actions but also protec-
commuter ridership on the LIRR was female, and, in an echo tion for employees. Employees, particularly those working
of what the TTC/METRAC study had found, women had in remote locations, can be victims of crime. Just as cameras
higher fear levels than men. The auto crime officers, who may be seen as enhancing risk mitigation and management
worked in street-clothes in conjunction with local police, oversight, they may also be seen as crime prevention mecha-
were arrest-oriented and were able to bring the theft statistics nisms for protecting employees and their property.
down more than 50% between 1993 and 1995 (Interactive
Elements Inc. 1997). Members of the unit attributed their A number of transit agencies have used video surveillance
success to the availability of unmarked cars that allowed in employee areas for decades, including Buffalo's NFTA
them to remain surreptitiously in the parking lots but also to and Cleveland's RTA, which in addition to monitoring key
having a member of the team monitor surveillance cameras revenue facilities as early as the mid-1990s maintained a
within the lot so that the plainclothes officers in the lot could surveillance vehicle for covert operations (Gilbert 1995).
be quickly dispatched to arrest the thieves in the act of steal- Although a wide variety of locations were listed among the
ing parked vehicles (Schulz and Gilbert 1995, p. 27). types of employee facilities where video was installed, a
number of generalizations are possible. Surveillance tended
Adding surveillance to parking facilities addresses patron to be employed most frequently in equipment yards and
fears and may result in lowered crime rates, but it also has wherever personnel had access to large amounts of cash.
important implications for risk management. Because of the The other most-frequently-listed location was the operations
extensive literature on parking lot crime and the importance control center. Fewer than half the agencies indicated that
