CTA getting new high-definition cameras for downtown stops

CHICAGO (AP) - Smile, you’re on Candid Camera, Chicago Transit Authority-style.

CTA President Dorval Carter tells the Chicago Tribune that work crews have started installing new high-definition cameras at downtown stops as well as extra lighting as part of a five-year $33 million modernization project.

Carter says by the end of the year all 33,000 cameras across the “L’’ system will be high-definition - a change that will mean police investigating crimes on the CTA will have access to sharper images than ever before.

Money for the program is coming from a tax on ride-share trips. Late last year, the City Council approved a proposal to increase city fees on ride-share trips after Chicago officials said commuters’ use of ride-sharing services instead of the CTA was costing the city millions of dollars.