By Forum Staff
City and State leaders on Wednesday celebrated data released by the City Police Department showing new milestones in NYC’s and the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s efforts to make Big Apple subways safer.
Transit crime is down 44.4 percent this week compared to the same week last year, down 26.6 percent over the last four weeks compared to the same time period last year, and down 7.8 percent year to date compared to 2023.
According to Mayor Eric Adams, if current trends continue, July will be the sixth consecutive month with a double-digit decrease in subway crime. Last year, overall crime in the transit system fell nearly 3 percent compared to 2022, as the number of riders increased by 14 percent. This year, transit crime was down 15.4 percent in February, 23.5 percent in March, 23 percent in April, 10.6 percent in May, and 15.3 percent in June.
The massive reduction in subway crime came in February, after Adams directed the NYPD to surge an additional 1,000 police officers into the subway system each day. Additionally, in March, the NYPD announced “Operation Fare Play,” an initiative to ensure riders pay their fare when entering the subway system by deploying 800 more police officers into the subway system to crack down on fare evasion.
“Our public transit system is the lifeblood of our city, and keeping New Yorkers safe on the subway is key to ensuring that New York remains the safest big city in America,” Adams said. “Today, it is clear: thanks to our efforts, our subways are getting even safer. We’ve had five straight months of double-digit decreases in overall subway crime after we surged more than 1,000 additional officers into the system in February, and, so far, in July, we’re on track for a sixth month of safer subways. Today, other than during the pandemic, our transit system is the safest it’s been in 14 years, with the lowest number of robberies in recorded history—and we’re committed to making our subways even safer. I’m grateful to have partners in Governor Hochul, NYPD Commissioner Caban, and MTA Chair and CEO Lieber who share our commitment to making the safest city in the country even safer.”
City Police Commissioner Edward Caban added, “The tireless efforts of the men and women of the NYPD are making a remarkable impact on the overall safety and quality of life of all New Yorkers, both on the streets and throughout our vast transit system. With subway ridership steadily increasing, the NYPD continues to deploy its resources to stations, platforms, and trains in a strategic, intelligence-driven manner that is lifting every neighborhood and improving the lives of all the people we serve in communities across our great city.”
Deputy Mayor for Operations and MTA Board Member Meera Joshi said, “As New Yorkers go about their days, going to work and school, picking up their kids, going out for the night, they should be confident that they’ll get where they’re going without incident. Today, thanks to the hard-working staff at the NYPD and MTA, and our partners across every level of government, we can safely say that that confidence is warranted.”
