Dave_The_BMXER
07-14-2008, 10:12 AM
Outpouring of anger at GO TheStar.com - Fixer - Outpouring of anger at GO
SUPPLIED PHOTO
A reader sent in a photo of this car after he discovered it without wheels — they were stolen — at the Bronte GO station.
GO PARKING LOTS ARE BUSY PLACES
50,000
parking spots available every day
12 million
cars a year use GO lots
350
incidents of theft and vandalism reported to GO annually
181
train trips and 1,826 bus trips daily
205,000
passengers GO trains and buses carry on a weekday
Readers say vehicles are stolen and damaged far more often than GO Transit is admitting
July 14, 2008
Jack Lakey
Staff Reporter
GO Transit parking lots are "auto parts stores" for brazen thieves who freely operate in broad daylight due to inadequate security, say readers who've been ripped off and police who track the problem.
But don't count on GO to get serious about it. Gary McNeil, GO's managing director, says he wants to be "much more pro-active," but in an interview, he would not commit to any specific measures to improve parking security.
GO is "looking at" increasing staff at some stations, and also at better lighting, as well as the possibility of a formal process for reporting thefts and vandalism, said McNeil.
But when asked if he was willing to increase parking security patrols, he cited "very scarce resources."
"In order to have a high degree of security at those stations, you'd probably need about 10 people. Even if you've got a station attendant in a station with a CCTV (closed circuit television) camera, that's a very large area to monitor."
Last month, we reported on thefts of catalytic converters from vehicles parked at the Rouge Hill GO station at Lawrence Ave. E. and Port Union Rd., where many vehicles were targeted on June 4.
GO responded by saying its parking lots are "quite safe," with an average of just 350 reported incidents of theft and vandalism annually in lots where a total of 12 million vehicles are parked per year.
Many readers said they thought the problem was a lot worse than 350 incidents annually, so we asked people to let us know if they've had problems.
More than 100 emails and calls flooded in from angry readers, some of whom were victimized several times in a year or less at GO stations. The emails made it clear that GO has no process for riders to report thefts, doesn't share information with police, is understaffed with security officers, and has little or no video surveillance at many lots. Almost all thefts occur during the day, when the lots are jammed with vehicles.
It's not just readers who take issue with the lack of security. Police say parking areas are easy pickings because nobody's watching, and even if GO provides surveillance tapes after a theft, they aren't much help in revealing who did it.
"They don't seem to have any effective security and no real monitoring of cameras," said Const. John Fulton, a Toronto police crime analyst in 43 Division, which includes Rouge Hill.
"Wherever you get a large amount of cars (left alone) in one area, it's like a big red flag for anyone stealing cars or parts. It's like, hey, we've got a whole inventory here."
Robin Thompson had the catalytic converter stolen from her Jeep Grand Cherokee on June 4 at Rouge Hill, and says GO security officers told her a total of seven were stolen that day. "I was also told by GO they are short-staffed and do the best they can to patrol the lots, but there are no cameras.
"The police told me this is a serious problem and GO is not taking responsibility for it. I'm a female, so am I even safe walking across the parking lot, because no one is watching?"
Carol Arsenault said a friend had both doors of her Jeep stolen at Rouge Hill. "It was in the dead of winter and she had to drive home with no doors on her vehicle."
Tom Quigley said he drove his son's car, which had fancy custom lights, to the Pickering GO lot and "parked close to the ticket booth, thinking it would be safer. Imagine my reaction when I returned to see it sitting there with all the lights missing and the wires hanging out."
While reporting the theft to Durham Region police, he says an officer told him "that thieves treated the Pickering GO lot like an auto parts store, and that they were used to seeing people like me drive in every day at that time with damaged cars."
Ambrose Lee says his car was broken into three times in nine months at the Streetsville GO lot, despite having an alarm system and steering wheel lock. "I contacted GO and their response was the parking lots are public space and they are not responsible.
"When they break into my car, the alarm goes off very loud, yet they have the time and autonomy to search my car and take whatever they want. In broad daylight!"
Joanne Kearney, who had her car stolen from the Mimico GO lot, said that when she tried to talk to a ticket attendant about it, "he turned his head and wouldn't look at me, let alone say a single word."
Many readers said when they tried to report a theft to a GO station employee, they were treated rudely, ignored or told it wasn't GO's problem, and they should call police.
Darrel Ang said his car was broken into at the Oakville GO station in early June. When he tried to report it to a GO employee in the station, "he was rude and very short with me, wanting nothing to do with the incident, even walking away from me while we were speaking."
GO's annual average of 350 reported incidents a year may have a lot to do with the absence of a formal reporting process and unwillingness on the part of many staff to take information from victims.
When asked how GO deals with theft complaints, McNeil said: "We have signs indicating to people to call through to Crimestoppers, if they have to. Around our stations we have signs advising people of our transit enforcement number."
But there is no formal process to take information from customers about theft, he said. "I don't know how we could do that. I would say it's common sense that if your car has been stolen or broken into, that you let the person know whose property it was on that that's what happened."
We asked for details about the number of security officers patrolling stations and the frequency of patrol time at stations, but we couldn't get a straight answer.
When we asked about video surveillance, Ed Shea, who deals with media for GO, refused to provide any information, saying, "If we just gave you all that information, we'd be divulging information that would simply help criminals."
Fulton, the crime analyst, said he briefs officers on a daily basis at the start of their shift, "and I'm always mentioning the GO train parking lots. It's always a hot topic."
In 2007, collision air bags were the "taste sensation of the year" in GO lots, said Fulton, but catalytic converters are a target this year.
Between Jan. 1 and July 10, a total of 10 thefts from Rouge Hill were reported to 43 Division, said Fulton, "but there's no way there's only been 10 occurrences there." Police compile crime data by address, so some reports from drivers may have been entered with the address of the station.
"If you don't have hard facts because of proper reporting procedures, then you can slough it off."
http://www.thestar.com/printArticle/459534
Tons of comments too.
SUPPLIED PHOTO
A reader sent in a photo of this car after he discovered it without wheels — they were stolen — at the Bronte GO station.
GO PARKING LOTS ARE BUSY PLACES
50,000
parking spots available every day
12 million
cars a year use GO lots
350
incidents of theft and vandalism reported to GO annually
181
train trips and 1,826 bus trips daily
205,000
passengers GO trains and buses carry on a weekday
Readers say vehicles are stolen and damaged far more often than GO Transit is admitting
July 14, 2008
Jack Lakey
Staff Reporter
GO Transit parking lots are "auto parts stores" for brazen thieves who freely operate in broad daylight due to inadequate security, say readers who've been ripped off and police who track the problem.
But don't count on GO to get serious about it. Gary McNeil, GO's managing director, says he wants to be "much more pro-active," but in an interview, he would not commit to any specific measures to improve parking security.
GO is "looking at" increasing staff at some stations, and also at better lighting, as well as the possibility of a formal process for reporting thefts and vandalism, said McNeil.
But when asked if he was willing to increase parking security patrols, he cited "very scarce resources."
"In order to have a high degree of security at those stations, you'd probably need about 10 people. Even if you've got a station attendant in a station with a CCTV (closed circuit television) camera, that's a very large area to monitor."
Last month, we reported on thefts of catalytic converters from vehicles parked at the Rouge Hill GO station at Lawrence Ave. E. and Port Union Rd., where many vehicles were targeted on June 4.
GO responded by saying its parking lots are "quite safe," with an average of just 350 reported incidents of theft and vandalism annually in lots where a total of 12 million vehicles are parked per year.
Many readers said they thought the problem was a lot worse than 350 incidents annually, so we asked people to let us know if they've had problems.
More than 100 emails and calls flooded in from angry readers, some of whom were victimized several times in a year or less at GO stations. The emails made it clear that GO has no process for riders to report thefts, doesn't share information with police, is understaffed with security officers, and has little or no video surveillance at many lots. Almost all thefts occur during the day, when the lots are jammed with vehicles.
It's not just readers who take issue with the lack of security. Police say parking areas are easy pickings because nobody's watching, and even if GO provides surveillance tapes after a theft, they aren't much help in revealing who did it.
"They don't seem to have any effective security and no real monitoring of cameras," said Const. John Fulton, a Toronto police crime analyst in 43 Division, which includes Rouge Hill.
"Wherever you get a large amount of cars (left alone) in one area, it's like a big red flag for anyone stealing cars or parts. It's like, hey, we've got a whole inventory here."
Robin Thompson had the catalytic converter stolen from her Jeep Grand Cherokee on June 4 at Rouge Hill, and says GO security officers told her a total of seven were stolen that day. "I was also told by GO they are short-staffed and do the best they can to patrol the lots, but there are no cameras.
"The police told me this is a serious problem and GO is not taking responsibility for it. I'm a female, so am I even safe walking across the parking lot, because no one is watching?"
Carol Arsenault said a friend had both doors of her Jeep stolen at Rouge Hill. "It was in the dead of winter and she had to drive home with no doors on her vehicle."
Tom Quigley said he drove his son's car, which had fancy custom lights, to the Pickering GO lot and "parked close to the ticket booth, thinking it would be safer. Imagine my reaction when I returned to see it sitting there with all the lights missing and the wires hanging out."
While reporting the theft to Durham Region police, he says an officer told him "that thieves treated the Pickering GO lot like an auto parts store, and that they were used to seeing people like me drive in every day at that time with damaged cars."
Ambrose Lee says his car was broken into three times in nine months at the Streetsville GO lot, despite having an alarm system and steering wheel lock. "I contacted GO and their response was the parking lots are public space and they are not responsible.
"When they break into my car, the alarm goes off very loud, yet they have the time and autonomy to search my car and take whatever they want. In broad daylight!"
Joanne Kearney, who had her car stolen from the Mimico GO lot, said that when she tried to talk to a ticket attendant about it, "he turned his head and wouldn't look at me, let alone say a single word."
Many readers said when they tried to report a theft to a GO station employee, they were treated rudely, ignored or told it wasn't GO's problem, and they should call police.
Darrel Ang said his car was broken into at the Oakville GO station in early June. When he tried to report it to a GO employee in the station, "he was rude and very short with me, wanting nothing to do with the incident, even walking away from me while we were speaking."
GO's annual average of 350 reported incidents a year may have a lot to do with the absence of a formal reporting process and unwillingness on the part of many staff to take information from victims.
When asked how GO deals with theft complaints, McNeil said: "We have signs indicating to people to call through to Crimestoppers, if they have to. Around our stations we have signs advising people of our transit enforcement number."
But there is no formal process to take information from customers about theft, he said. "I don't know how we could do that. I would say it's common sense that if your car has been stolen or broken into, that you let the person know whose property it was on that that's what happened."
We asked for details about the number of security officers patrolling stations and the frequency of patrol time at stations, but we couldn't get a straight answer.
When we asked about video surveillance, Ed Shea, who deals with media for GO, refused to provide any information, saying, "If we just gave you all that information, we'd be divulging information that would simply help criminals."
Fulton, the crime analyst, said he briefs officers on a daily basis at the start of their shift, "and I'm always mentioning the GO train parking lots. It's always a hot topic."
In 2007, collision air bags were the "taste sensation of the year" in GO lots, said Fulton, but catalytic converters are a target this year.
Between Jan. 1 and July 10, a total of 10 thefts from Rouge Hill were reported to 43 Division, said Fulton, "but there's no way there's only been 10 occurrences there." Police compile crime data by address, so some reports from drivers may have been entered with the address of the station.
"If you don't have hard facts because of proper reporting procedures, then you can slough it off."
http://www.thestar.com/printArticle/459534
Tons of comments too.