Anastasia Loukaitou-Sideris, interim dean of the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs, appeared on the podcast Transportopia to discuss critical issues of safety and security in public transportation.

Loukaitou-Sideris drew on her extensive body of research on the transit experience, including how to protect riders and operators while creating spaces that are open and welcoming.

Transit hubs are not innately dangerous, she said. “It is simply the fact that transit attracts hundreds of thousands of people every day in small spaces, and that increases the opportunities for crime.”

To increase safety and visibility, transit agencies can employ a number of tools, said Loukaitou-Sideris, a distinguished professor of urban planning. These include thoughtful design and new technologies, such as upgrading lighting, installing security cameras, and providing apps that give arrival and departure information in real time.

In some locations, safety audits of transit lines have become a community-wide effort, with participants from schools and other local groups. Some transit agencies also enter partnerships with social service providers to offer appropriate resources for those in need of mental health help.

Loukaitou-Sideris offered practical advice for transit agencies seeking to increase safety and decrease fear: “Don’t only rely on one strategy,” she said. “Do research, find data and match it with your resources.”