New Crime Tracking System Introduced in University City
Philadelphia, PA (24 September 2001) --- There’s a new marshal in University City. UCDCAMS -- University City District Crime Analysis and Mapping System -- is a customized software application designed to increase public safety to a degree not previously possible through precision crime-tracking and personnel deployment. A demonstration of UCDCAMS will be held at the University City District Operations Center, 3940 Chestnut St., on October 4th from 2:30-3:30 p.m. UCD Public Safety Director Greg Montanaro, UCD Executive Director Eric T. Goldstein, and Kevin J. Switala, the application engineer, will present. This capability is unique to the University City District.
UCDCAMS uses GIS (geographic information system) technology with data provided by the Philadelphia Police Department to map the locations of crimes on a weekly basis. The crime information is downloaded from the police intranet to a stand-alone, desktop computer where the UCD Police Substation commander and a specially-trained officer can access it. UCD boundaries, Philadelphia Police district boundaries, neighborhoods, SEPTA stations, universities, hospitals, schools, transitional housing, and parks are layered through GIS into the maps so that trends and hotspots can be more easily observed. Also, searches under specific parameters can be performed and mapped.
Another special feature of UCDCAMS is that it accesses only data pertaining to the area within University City District boundaries. This is important because the UCD spans
parts of three police districts (12th, 16th, and 18th), and the method previously was to take data from the entire district and sort out the blocks falling within the UCD. This process was time consuming and, because the UCD lacked the intranet connection, data was gathered only monthly.
A second application to be used with UCDCAMS is UCDRDA, or UCD Resource Deployment Application. This software allows the police to organize deployment based on CAMS maps by placing symbols for patrol vehicles, bicycle cops, and foot beats on the map. These can be printed out on demand for roll call or special deployment meetings. The UCDRDA capability is entirely new in this region of the country.
UCDCAMS and UCDRDA were developed by GeoDecisions, a spatial information technology firm headquartered in Harrisburg.
The good news is that overall crime is down in University City by 36% (January through August 2001 year-to-date). Montanaro and Carbonara will brief those present on the current state of public safety following the demo.
Expected to attend next week’s demonstration and briefing are Commissioner John Timoney, Councilwoman Jannie L. Blackwell, UCD Substation Commander Lt. Fred Carbonara, and area institutional security personnel will attend.
Celebrating its fifth year of operation, University City District builds effective partnerships to maintain a clean and safe environment and to promote, plan, and advocate for University City's diverse urban community. The UCD's programs to improve streetscapes and parks, remove trash and graffiti, provide technical assistance to home- and business owners, increase public safety, and publicize University City's advantages have improved the quality of life since 1997. For information about University City or the UCD, call 215 243 0555 or visit www.UCityphila.com.
Release Date: Monday, September 24th 2001
