BEGINNING WITH A SUMMARY OF THE STUDY, THE REPORT GOES ON TO EXAMINE THE SCOPE AND IMPORTANCE OF URBAN MASS TRANSIT IN THE UNITED STATES. IT ALSO SURVEYS THE PROBLEMS FACING THESE SYSTEMS, FOCUSING ON THE IMPACT OF CRIME ON PASSENGERS AND SYSTEM VIABILITY AS WELL AS RESPONSES BY TRANSIT AND GOVERNMENT OF OFFICIALS. THE THIRD SECTION IDENTIFIES INFORMATION SOURCES AND DATA CONSTRAINTS. ANOTHER SECTION TRACES THE DEVELOPMENT OF TRANSIT POLICING AND HIGHLIGHTS CURRENT POLICING ARRANGEMENTS FOR A NUMBER OF RAPID RAIL AND BUS SYSTEMS. AN ANALYTICAL FRAMEWORK DESIGNED TO PROVIDE A COHERENT CONTEXT FOR INVESTIGATING TRANSIT CRIME PROBLEMS, THE POLICE RESPONSES, AND THE IMPACT OF THESE RESPONSES IS INCLUDED IN THE TEXT. THE FRAMEWORK DEPICTS THE INTERACTIONS BETWEEN THE TRANSIT ENVIRONMENT, POLICING, AND CRIME. THE KEY QUESTIONS RELATED TO PLANNING AND EVALUATION ARE ADDRESSED IN SECTION SIX. CURRENT KNOWLEDGE IS ASSESSED AND INFORMATION GAPS IDENTIFIED WITHIN THE CONTEXT OF EACH QUESTION. FINALLY, RECOMMENDATIONS FOR FUTURE RESEARCH AND EVALUATION EFFORTS DESIGNED TO RESPOND TO CURRENT PROBLEMS AND FILL PRESENT GAPS IN KNOWLEDGE ARE OFFERED IN CHAPTER SEVEN. (AUTHOR ABSTRACT)...KAP