Along with people rushing to get to their train will also be hundreds more police officers throughout the transit system.
What You Need To Know
- On Monday night, the first of 300 extra cops started their late-night shift, which goes into the early morning, riding on trains between 9 p.m. until 5 a.m.
- For some, high-profile incidents have undermined the work of the NYPD as transit crime at the end of 2024 dropped 5.4% when compared with the end of 2023
- The city will foot half of $154 million in overtime for six months. The state will fund the second half
On Monday night, the first of 300 extra cops started their late-night shift, which goes into the early morning, riding on trains between 9 p.m. until 5 a.m.
“I’m not sure it makes me feel any safer. I mean, I hope it does. I guess someone watching you helps,” Upper East Side resident Austin Stapleton said.
That’s what officials hope the extra officers will help do over the next six months. They’re part of an additional 750 cops being deployed underground, part of a promise from Gov. Kathy Hochul’s State of the State address last week.
“You can’t open your phone without a headline without [seeing] someone getting jumped, stabbed or pushed on the tracks,” Maspeth resident Carlos Genao said.
Those incidents undermining some of the work of the NYPD as transit crime at the end of 2024 dropped 5.4% when compared with the end of 2023.
“It’s no secret that overall numbers on crime have headed in the right direction, but we really need people to feel more safety, especially after some of the high-profile incidents we’ve had,” MTA Chair and CEO Janno Lieber said.
The city will foot half of $154 million in overtime for six months. The state will fund the second half.
“I do think subway safety is needed, but I do wish that they would be trained properly,” Jackson Heights resident Jasmine Carbajal said.
Carbajal says she likes the idea of more officers, but hopes they’re trained when they’re likely to encounter someone suffering from mental illness.