Widespread concern that extending public transportation to suburban ar
eas will increase crime in those areas threatens the long-term viabili
ty of the transit systems and the metropolitan areas they serve. There
has been little systematic research on whether crime increases when n
ew transit service is initiated in suburban areas. This paper presents
a preliminary time series analysis of crime incidence in suburban nei
ghborhoods surrounding two rapid rail stations opened in June 1993 in
DeKalb County, Georgia. One contains considerable activity, while the
other is move uniformly residential. Reported incidents of 12 types of
crime were tracked over three and a half years preceding the opening
of the rail stations and 18 months after the intervention point. The r
esults suggest some step increases in reported crime when the stations
opened. They also suggest the increases were followed by a decreasing
crime trend to earlier levels over the next several months.