Mayor Richard M. Daley and Chicago Transit Authority officials said that by May 31, one or more safety cameras will have been installed at every one of the CTA's 144 rail stations. The Mayor also said that by the end of the year CTA plans to have nearly 3,000 cameras installed system-wide.

 

Daley said that since 2002, the CTA has made progress in upgrading its infrastructure to include the addition of safety cameras. And so far this year, it has installed about 550 cameras, increasing coverage to more than 1,800.

 

After each station across the system has at least one high definition camera installed, additional cameras will be installed across the rail system beginning with the Loop stations and along the Brown and Red lines by this fall, Daley said. All stations will have full deployment of cameras by the end of the year.

 

The CTA is investing approximately $19 million to install and network security cameras across the system. The remainder of the funds will be used to further enhance the security network by improving the video management system.

 

All the projects will be paid for by a combination of DHS, Federal Transit Administration and Regional Transportation Authority funds.

 

Daley said that later this year CTA will launch a pilot program to see whether it's feasible to retrofit CTA's rail cars with safety cameras. The CTA's new 5000-series rail cars come equipped with cameras.