LA Metro says transit system has experienced a nearly 60% drop in homelessness since 2024

Los Angeles Metro says that its transit system has seen a remarkable drop in homeless numbers in stations and on trains since 2024, when a stretch of crime had peaked community concern. 

"I take it every day. It's gotten cleaner, definitely, and much safer, I believe," said Jonathan Tirado, a daily commuter who works at Hollywood High School. 

Tirado goes round-trip from the North Hollywood Red Line station to and from work and has noticed a big difference.

"There's a lot more patrol on the Metro stations now too," he said. "Especially with the new D Line that came in. It has gotten a lot better, especially since COVID."

According to Metro officials, the transit has seen a nearly 60% drop in homeless people loitering over the past two years. They're attributing the success to nonprofit organizations that do homeless outreach throughout their system. 

"Right now, we've got six different partners all throughout Los Angeles County that total 24 multidisciplinary teams, who go on the system and do outreach from early in the morning until late at night," said Craig Joyce, LA Metro's Senior Executive Officer of Care-Based Services. 

Additionally, they believe that a new series of safety measures, which includes security ambassadors who fan across the transit lines and their strict fare-enforcement program called "Tap to Pay," have made a difference.