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ICYMI: Governor Hochul Announces New Initiatives to Protect Subway Riders and Transit Workers by Increasing Police Patrols and Installing Additional Safety Features

New York City Transit
Updated Jan 14, 2025 3:45 p.m.
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Partnering With NYPD, Every Subway Train Will Have a Uniformed Officer Onboard Between 9:00 p.m. and 5:00 a.m. 

New Protective Barriers Will Be Installed on Platforms in More Than 100 Stations; LED Lighting Will Be Installed In All Subway Stations To Increase Visibility

Fare Gates or Exits Will Be Modernized In More Than 150 Stations To Crack Down on Fare Evasion

 

Governor Hochul today announced comprehensive new steps to increase law enforcement presence, expand public resources and strengthen mental health policies to make the transit system safer for New Yorkers. These new measures include partnering with New York City officials to increase NYPD patrols on subway platforms and trains; installing new protective barriers on subway platforms to protect riders; upgrading fare gates and delaying egress on exit gates to help crack down on fare evasion; adding LED lighting throughout stations to increase visibility; and updating and strengthening key mental health laws to ensure that New Yorkers with severe mental illness are connected with care instead of being left to languish on subway trains and platforms. These new steps continue the Governor’s ongoing commitment to prioritizing public safety and protecting riders and workers throughout the subway system.

“Keeping New Yorkers safe is my top priority — and that means making sure our subways feel safe and are safe for every single rider and worker.” Governor Hochul said. “No one should be in fear that they’ll be a victim of crime as they commute to work, go to school or enjoy a night out — that is why we’re partnering with law enforcement, improving our infrastructure and ensuring that New Yorkers struggling with mental illness get the support they need.”

Increasing Law Enforcement Presence Throughout the System

Governor Hochul will partner with New York City to increase New York Police Department (NYPD) presence on platforms and trains by temporarily surging patrol levels in addition to the National Guardsmen that have been re-deployed into the transit system. Approximately 750 NYPD officers will be stationed across New York City with an additional 300 in the train cars themselves. The increase in enforcement will prioritize 30 subways stations and transit hubs that account for 50 percent of crime in the transit system.

The Governor will also work with New York City to increase police patrols on every overnight train for the next six months. NYPD officers will work from 9 p.m. to 5 a.m., and there will be a uniformed officer onboard every subway train in service during those hours. 

This expansion of law enforcement patrols builds on the Governor’s previous announcement in December 2024 to add an additional 250 members of the National Guard to support subway safety, bringing the total to 1,000 National Guardsmen stationed at subway entrances in points throughout New York City.

New Public Safety Resources to Protect Riders and Prevent Fare Evasion

Governor Hochul will provide the funding to install platform edge barriers at more than 100 additional stations by the end of 2025. The selection of stations for the installation process will prioritize feasibility, including stations with standard car-stopping positions in segments of the trains. Among these train lines, stations with higher ridership levels and island platforms will be prioritized. 

To address fare evasion, Governor Hochul will invest in modern fare gates in more than 20 stations across the system in 2025, and an additional 20 stations in 2026. Additionally, exit gates will delay egress at 150 additional stations in an effort to reduce fare evasion. At the Governor’s direction, the MTA will prioritize stations with higher ridership traffic, accessibility features and those with high fare evasion. The piloted design used in the roll-out was solicited through the MTA’s “Request for Information” to qualify the next generation of fare gates across the system. Initial installation is scheduled to begin at 42 St-Port Authority, Delancey St-Essex St and Roosevelt Av-Jackson Heights. 

The Governor will also provide funding to install LED lighting in all subway stations throughout the system which will increase visibility throughout the stations. 

These new investments build on the Governor’s previous deployments of public safety programs and resources throughout the subway system, including a new proposal to ban assaulters of commuters and transit workers, improved coordination between law enforcement and district attorneys, and installing new cameras in subway trains throughout the system to help protect customers, conductors and staff.

Expanding Mental Health Partnerships and Resources

Governor Hochul’s Safe Options Support (SOS) initiative has successfully transitioned nearly 850 unhoused individuals into permanent housing and continues to make progress. SOS teams deployed across New York State often encounter individuals experiencing unmet medical and psychiatric needs. To address this gap, Governor Hochul will add street medicine and street psychiatry providers to SOS teams statewide. These providers will deliver timely care directly to individuals during outreach, improving access to psychiatric evaluations and medical treatment without requiring individuals to leave their belongings or seek care in hospitals. This approach will enhance trust, build rapport and encourage individuals to accept services and transition indoors, improving outcomes for New York’s most vulnerable residents.

Additionally — to further help reduce homelessness in the subway system — Governor Hochul will work with the NYC Department of Homeless Services to expand their 24/7 “Welcome Center” model near end-of-line stations and will create spaces within stations that have a large presence of unhoused people for our mobile outreach teams to better connect and coordinate services.

Governor Hochul previously announced a $20 million investment to expand the Subway Co-Response Outreach Teams (SCOUT) throughout the system to ten by the end of 2025, as a part of her five-point plan to protect New Yorkers on the subway. SCOUT teams are trained to address the most severe cases of mental health crisis within the subway system and assist New Yorkers in gaining access to mental health treatment and supportive housing. 

The Governor has made strengthening New York State’s mental health system a priority of her administration, landing historic investments in housing for people with mental illness and directing a large increase in inpatient psychiatric bed capacity at state-operated and community-based hospital systems. In addition, her initiatives have broadened prevention services, improved insurance coverage, and expanded outpatient services for people with mental illness.