Metro is reporting drastic drops in crime aboard its bus and rail system for the second year in a row.
“We are the safest Metro’s ever been,” Metro General Manager Randy Clarke said during a news conference Tuesday.
Data from Metro’s 2026 fiscal year, from July 2025 through June, show the number of aggravated assaults decreased by 19% compared with fiscal 2025 levels. Robberies fell 36% to 75 cases for the year.
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Assaults of Metro personnel, including bus drivers and station managers, fell about 22%. Total violent crime was down 14%.
These “Part 1” crimes were down 61% per million rides in 2026 compared with the 2023 fiscal year, Metro said.
The declines did not extend to all crimes. Drug offenses were up about 25% from the prior year.
“Violent crime is the one that’s gone down the most,” acting chief of the Metro Transit Police Stephen Boehm said.
Officials at Metro are partially crediting the transit system’s stepped up enforcement of fare evasion. During the 2026 fiscal year, there were over 9,600 bus fare evasion citations, up from a 2023 low of just seven total citations for the entire year. Metrorail enforcement went up 485% during the same period.
“When we stop someone for fare evading, we have the ability then to run their name,” Clarke said. “You have outstanding warrants — we will now apprehend you and put you in custody for those outstanding warrants.”
The addition of National Guard troops may have helped as well, he said.
“Clearly, having the National Guard on the system is more eyes and ears of the system,” Clarke said.
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