Peaking Crime Rates Are Shaking New Yorkers' Confidence In Subway System

NYPD heightened street patrol in Sunset Park in days following the shooting on the N train.

(Note: Emily Liu is a contributor to this article)

Leon Guzman planned to visit a friend in Downtown Brooklyn on April 12. A few minutes later, he received a call from her, informing him of an active gunman at the 36th Street subway station. Concerned about the safety of his friend’s brother, a student at Sunset Park High School, Guzman rented a Citi Bike and rushed to the scene.

“I saw chaos, a lot of people, fire trucks, police officers, news reporters, everything,” said Guzman, revealing the scene outside the station. Recalling the day Frank R. James fired shots in a Manhattan-bound N train at 36th Street and 4th Avenue, the 18-year-old Brooklyn resident described the sight as terrible.

Crimes on the subway system have continued to spike across all five boroughs of New York City, alarming commuters that avoided using public transit before due to fear of contracting COVID.

According to recent New York Police Department statistics, crimes reported on the transit system have increased over the past two years. Complaints recorded till September jumped to 3,411, a 38% rise over the last two years.

Stephanie Sung, 39, believes that the subway is becoming more dangerous at night for women. “I have not experienced more safety here post-pandemic,” said Sung, describing the insecurity she felt after “disturbed people” passed racist remarks at her a month ago. A consultant at Venture Federal Services, Sung also mentioned noticing a man masturbating at her on Second Avenue station once, which made her feel uncomfortable.

Although police records from the past three years indicate assault and harassment as leading crimes across all 12 transit districts, five of the commuters interviewed also reported encountering people with guns in subway cars.

“Once I saw this man showing me his pistol and smiling at me,” said a Chinatown-based street florist, sharing his account of riding an Uptown-bound D train in August. Sensing danger, he instantly got off at the next station and rushed towards the street exit. Identifying as an undocumented immigrant, the individual requested anonymity.

Guzman, a cashier at Sunset Bagels, located next to the 36th Street subway entrance, also spoke about escaping a possible gun incident. He recalled seeing a drunken man harassing passengers on an A train. Around five minutes later, Guzman saw the individual “placing his right hand on a gun magazine” visible through his back pocket.

Mayor Eric Adams, since getting elected last November, has advocated increasing police presence for public safety. Additional police units at subway stations come as part of Adams’ initiative to tackle citywide crimes.

On Oct.22, Adams, joined by Gov. Kathy Hochul, announced an addition of 1,200 patrolling shifts each day at major subway hubs including the Penn Station, Grand Central Terminal, and Sutphin-Archer (Jamaica) Station.

However, hardline policing has put many of the city’s impoverished communities at disadvantage.

Police officers deployed at subway stations are engaged in relocating the city’s homeless to shelter homes, a crucial tactic for Adams’ initiative to reform subways for public safety. However, these efforts have also forced street performers and food vendors to move out of subway terminals and seek accommodation elsewhere.

“I try to stay out of their [police officers’] sight. I just hop around subway cars nowadays,” said Jaylon Tyler, 26, a guitarist who often performs on C train, and on platforms of the Upper West Side. According to Tyler, two police officers interrupted his performance at 103rd Street a month ago and ordered him to go somewhere else.

Contrarily, some, including subway workers, have appreciated tougher crackdown policies against crime such as additional police units.

Hunter Williams, a Bronx resident, joined the MTA earlier in November. Within the first four days of his job, the amount of “violent talk” directed at him and his colleagues has concerned him about safety at 34th Street-Herald Square station. “Put more NYPD officers and cameras out there,” said Williams, when asked about how city administration could restore public confidence in public transit.

Rising crimes on city’s subway lines also managed to draw attention of high-ranking state officials including Gov. Kathy Hochul, who on Sep. 22 announced installation of 5,700 cameras in subway cars and 3,800 cameras on subway stations, a program totaling $2 million in costs.

The initiative came five months after the shooting at 36th Street station that left 29 injured. Searching for James, police found that all three cameras at the station malfunctioned, leading to a day-long manhunt.

Despite a steep rise in crimes, ridership has continued to return to pre-pandemic levels. Compared to pre-pandemic estimates, MTA’s daily ridership data from the last ten days indicates that ridership has crossed 3.2 million on average, a 67% rise.

“In a weird way, it was just another day in New York,” said Guzman, sharing his view on the aftermath of the Brooklyn shooting.