RTD evaluated for strategies used to deter illicit drug use as part of study of five major cities with public transit 

RTD employing multiple strategies to deter unwanted activity on its system; RTD has seen a 65% monthly average decrease in reports of illicit drug activity for 2025

DENVER (Aug. 29, 2025) –– The Regional Transportation District (RTD) is one of five transit agencies evaluated in a study of transit systems and the strategies used to deter illicit drug activity. The first-of-its-kind research funded by the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) highlights how a broader societal issue has made its way into public transit systems in five major cities and the effects on post-pandemic ridership recovery. The Transit Cooperative Research Program (TCRP) evaluated agencies in Denver (RTD), Chicago (Chicago Transit Authority or CTA), Los Angeles (LA Metro), Philadelphia (Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority or SEPTA) and Portland (Tri-County Metropolitan Transportation District of Oregon or TriMet). 

Since 2022, RTD has implemented dozens of tactics to reinforce its safety and security measures for customers and employees. Collectively, these steps have not only resulted in a 30% reduction in security-related calls, but also a 65% drop in drug activity reports on average per month for 2025. Looking back to 2023, customer reports of illicit drug activity accounted for nearly 60% of all Transit Watch app reports received by RTD. Incident reports have declined by roughly two-thirds over the past two years. Last month, illicit drug activity represented 21% of all customer-reported incidents received by the agency via the Transit Watch mobile app.

“RTD participated in this important research to proactively contribute to solutions for the societal issue of illicit drug use that isn’t unique to Denver but impacts major cities in the U.S. and overflows into our public spaces, including transit. RTD continues to take an active approach to deterring unwanted activities and behaviors across our system for customer and employee safety,” said RTD Chief of Police and Emergency Management Steve Martingano. “We’re seeing measurable progress from adding Transit Police officers to the department with 24/7 patrolling, upgrading technology and using real-time video feeds at our stations, in addition to adapting facilities and environments to discourage unwanted activities and illicit drug use to promote a Welcoming Transit Environment for customers and employees.”

“The five transit agencies that took part in this study offered a rare and unflinching first-hand look at the realities of drug use on public transit – an act of leadership and vulnerability guiding us towards solutions to what has been a complex public health crisis,” said David Cooper, co-lead of the study and principal of Leading Mobility. “Each agency is taking this issue extremely seriously, and they universally stressed the need for sustained and broad support services: recovery, housing, increased staffing for outreach and enforcement, and harm reduction. ”

RTD is employing multiple strategies TCRP included in its evaluation as part of the research organization’s assessment of how the transit agencies are addressing illicit drug activity. RTD’s Customer Experience Elevator Program that kicked off in March 2024 as a pilot was noted by TCRP as an example of a proactive approach to deterring drug use, and RTD’s program has since been replicated by LA Metro. 

The program entails reprogramming elevator doors at select rail stations to remain open at rest to deter unwanted behaviors and activities. RTD’s Customer Experience Elevator Program started as a 90-day pilot program at three light rail stations and extended to another four stations given the reduction in security-related calls during the pilot phase. The agency plans to further expand the elevator program to more stations in the coming months. All elevators at RTD stations are also equipped with enhanced cameras that can be monitored remotely from police officer vehicles.

Data collection of transit agencies was a key finding from TCRP’s assessment considered to be invaluable for measuring the effectiveness of interventions addressing drug use. TCRP recommended transit agencies develop consistent data collection practices across the industry and encouraged information sharing and enhanced communication and collaboration with outreach providers, law enforcement and support organizations.

RTD routinely tracks security-related calls for service. Since TCRP conducted its research in the summer of 2024, RTD has now made all reports of security-related calls and illicit drug activity reports available on its Security-related Metrics webpage.

RTD’s Transit Watch app has been available for over 10 years, supporting customers with reporting of suspicious or unwanted activity on the agency’s property and vehicles. Contacts go directly to RTD’s Transit Police Communications dispatch team to evaluate the incident and deploy resources where needed. Other agencies evaluated that provide a Transit Watch app include LA Metro and SEPTA. 

Crime Prevention through Environmental Design (CPTED) principles are used by RTD and LA Metro of the five transit agencies evaluated in the study. RTD’s Transit Police Department experienced a notable decrease – about 60% in 2025 from 2022 – in security-related calls from Denver Union Station as part of its collaborative effort with other city organizations to “reclaim Union Station." The agency implemented CPTED principles to include adding monitors for updated surveillance, upgrading lighting and installing smoke detectors in bathrooms. TCRP noted RTD’s increased patrols at Union Station as “a constant Transit Police presence” as well as alterations to Union Stations that includes installing directional signage to deter loitering and unwanted activity.

Fare enforcement is another tool public transit agencies use to discourage unwanted behaviors and drug activity, including RTD, LA Metro and SEPTA. Since May 2024, RTD has increased fare checks on its rail system by over 500%. Conducting fare enforcement is an opportunity for officers to directly engage with RTD customers and educate individuals about the Respect the Ride Customer Code of Conduct.

TCRP’s report highlights that drug activity on transit systems is intertwined with those experiencing homelessness and in need of mental health interventions. The study recommends using a multidisciplinary approach extending to transit employees, frontline workers, government agencies and referral organizations to address these issues while also emphasizing transit agencies are tasked with societal issues they were not intended to address.

RTD was the first agency in the U.S. to staff mental health clinicians to conduct ridealongs with Transit Police officers. The four mental health clinicians aid Transit Police officers in addressing behaviors that might appear to be criminal activity rather than an individual experiencing a mental health episode.

Whereas RTD staffed one homelessness outreach coordinator at the time TCRP’s study was conducted, the agency now has four coordinators on staff as of May 2025. Outreach coordinators help unhoused individuals connect to resources ranging from basic necessities to mental health, medical, or substance abuse intervention. RTD-PD’s officers, contracted security personnel and outreach coordinators carry naloxone in the event of encountering individuals experiencing an overdose. SEPTA, LA Metro and TriMet are other agencies that utilize outreach programs to address unhoused individuals and drug activity. SEPTA and LA Metro are also funding temporary shelter beds for those taking shelter on the transit system to attempt to manage the societal issue impacting their systems and service delivery. 

Leading Mobility’s website published the study results that acknowledge the societal challenges transit agencies face that were neither intended nor implemented to address. Takeaways include: 

1. Trauma to frontline staff who experience exposures to overdoses
2. Enforcement gaps with jurisdictional conflicts and policies that can deter prosecution
3. Mission creep, where transit employees may need to act as public health responders
4. The lack of resources to fully address homelessness or illicit drug activity in the community that impacts services
5. Balance of providing outreach services such as naloxone administration and sharps disposal and evaluating whether they effectively support service delivery
6. Sharing data between transit agencies for determining effective interventions in addressing illicit drug activity

RTD continues to implement safety measures to protect its employees and customers including bus operator shields installed across its bus fleet and live look-in technology that may be activated by operators or called in by customers in the event of an emergency. RTD-PD is also in the process of launching a fully operational detective bureau this fall which will enable the agency to pursue investigations and applicable prosecutions across multiple jurisdictions within the district. All agencies evaluated have select staff that are trained and equipped with naloxone to address overdoses on the system.

The five agencies evaluated in TCRP’s study were selected based on their geographic diversity, varied transit modes such as bus and rail services, varying climates and evidence of existing outreach programs, station or operational changes and enforcement programs that could be impactful for deterring illicit drug use.

TCRP’s evaluation process included in-depth ridealongs and interviews with frontline employees, outreach providers and transit police in the five participating cities.

Martingano noted the culmination of efforts the Transit Police Department has taken to address unwanted activity on the agency’s system. “We’re encouraged to see a continued decline in drug-related incidents across our system throughout 2025. This progress reflects the combined efforts of law enforcement, security, mental health clinician co-responder units, unhoused navigators, RTD employees and customers working together to promote personal safety, support recovery, and preventing substance abuse across the system,” Martingano said.