New York tries to crack down on rising subway crime

The city will add 1,200 overtime police shifts a day to better staff subway cars and stations

People on board a subway train at the 42nd street station in New York. Reuters / Shannon Stapleton

A string of violent crimes on New York’s subways has authorities scrambling for a solution.

New York State Governor Kathy Hochul and Mayor Eric Adams unveiled a new plan to combat Subway crime, which has increased since the pandemic.

The city plans to add 1,200 overtime police shifts to increase the police presence at subway stations around the city.

"Our expanded subway safety strategy of Cops, Cameras, and Care will crack down on subway crime, help those experiencing homelessness get the support they need to get out of the system, and alleviate concerns of riders to ensure New Yorkers feel safer throughout the subway system,” said Governor Hochul.

Mr Adams, a former New York City Police captain, has made fighting crime a cornerstone of his agenda.

“The bottom line is that riders will see more officers in the system, and so will those thinking of breaking the law,” he said

Since Mayor Adams took office at the beginning of the year, crime has been steadily rising. According to New York City statistics there have been nine murders on the subway this year. Last year, the city saw five murders on the subway, while the pre-pandemic average was only one to two murders per year.

Last week, a man was killed by a subway train after he fell onto the tracks during a fight. In another incident, a 15 year-old-boy was shot and killed on the subway in Queens. Last month, a commuter was fatally stabbed while riding a train in Brooklyn.

In April, the city saw a mass shooting on the subway in Brooklyn that injured 29 people.

Mr Adams recently blamed the media for creating the “perception'' that the subway was unsafe.

“We have an average of less than six crimes a day on a subway system with 3.5 million riders,” He told CNN’s Chris Wallace.

“But if you write your story based on a narrative, then you’re going to look at the worst of those six crimes and put it on the front pages of your paper every day.”

In addition to the increased staffing, the mayor and governor announced the creation of two units at psychiatric centres “to help provide those experiencing serious mental health illness with the assistance they need”.

The announcement comes as Ms Hochul, who is up for re-election next month, finds herself in a surprisingly tight race with her Republican opponent, Lee Zeldin.

Mr Zeldin has been campaigning on the state’s rising crime statistics, often standing in front of subway stations to highlight the issue.

While Ms Hochul is still ahead in the polls, a recent survey by Quinnipiac University had Mr Zeldin just four points behind.

The democrats have held Albany since Republican governor, George Pataki left office in 2007.