Since the COVID-19 pandemic, unprovoked attacks on subway riders in New York City have surged, influencing the city's mayoral race. Candidates link subway crime to the growing homeless population in transit areas but differ on solutions, with some advocating for increased police presence and others for more mental health support. A recent poll indicates a majority of voters feel subway safety is declining. This issue has also caught the attention of U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, who has threatened federal funding cuts until a crime solution is addressed.
"Most of the people feel less safe," said Harlem resident Ben James, 38, after getting off a train at Union Square last week. "There are more homeless people who are on them 24 hours, seven days a week ... It's a mental health issue."
The NYPD reported 10 murders in the subway system in 2024, tying a record set in 2022 for the most in a calendar year since the department took control of transit policing in the mid-1990s.
An Emerson College poll in March estimated 48% of registered city voters thought the subways were becoming less safe, compared to 32% who thought they were becoming safer.
The topic has also drawn the attention of U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, who on Friday took a brief subway ride with Mayor Eric Adams after threatening to withhold federal funding from the MTA unless officials submit a plan to address transit crime.
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