The increase in subway crime in the last five years has left New Yorkers feeling uneasy.
Assaults have risen by 56% this year compared to 2019. In a departure from the usual one to two murders per year, there have been 10 murders in the subway system in 2024, double the number from 2023.
It was reassuring to hear that the City Council planned to conduct a special hearing to address subway safety issues.
However, the hearing did not focus on the widespread crime but on a completely avoidable type of harm in the subway system — self-inflicted harm.
“Subway surfing” involves passengers, mostly adolescents, climbing on top of subway cars on elevated tracks and riding them like surfboards while the trains reach speeds of up to 50 miles per hour.
This extremely dangerous activity has resulted in the deaths of six kids this year, with seven more sustaining severe injuries.
Subway surfing is undeniably dangerous. In early November, a girl fell off a 2 train in Harlem and lost an arm and a leg.
The gruesome sight of her arm on top of a traffic signal should serve as a warning to any potential imitators that this activity is a terrible idea.
In response, the MTA, schools, the Department of Youth and Community Development, and the NYPD have launched a comprehensive effort with subway ads, a social media campaign, and in-school messaging to raise awareness.
The police are utilizing drones to identify subway surfers in real-time and have arrested 181 individuals engaged in this risky behavior so far this year.
However, the City Council chose to focus on grandstanding and questioning why New Yorkers have not effectively engaged with their youth.
Public Advocate Jumaane Williams expressed concern over the increased arrests of young people and the growing use of surveillance technology, citing the NYPD’s history of monitoring New Yorkers.
He pondered during his testimony, “Would I listen to myself as a young person? I’m not entirely sure.” Williams concluded by calling for the expansion of resources for youth, including mental health treatment and safe after-school programs.
Council Member Althea Stevens echoed this sentiment, questioning why young people choose subway surfing over engaging in available programs and activities.
The emphasis on “programs” and “activities” by left-leaning members underscores their underlying objective of increased social spending as the solution to every issue.
New York City provides nearly 900 after-school programs, most of which are free or low-cost, along with numerous sports teams and clubs, and allocates billions of dollars for maintaining parks, playgrounds, pools, and recreation centers to offer kids alternatives to risky behaviors.
Despite these efforts, the city has failed in its “responsibility” to engage with the youth effectively.
Subway surfing is a serious issue, and those who engage in it should be made aware of the consequences, such as the girl who lost limbs in a subway accident.
However, what is truly concerning is that the City Council rushed to schedule a hearing on a topic where their impact is limited, while overlooking the pervasive crime in the subway system, an issue within their jurisdiction to address.
During a public safety budget hearing in March 2024, Williams suggested that subway crime was caused by the mere presence of police.
Council Member Lincoln Restler criticized the NYPD for targeting non-white individuals in mass arrests.
Without evidence, Bronx District Attorney Darcel Clark claimed that the lack of resources for youth and mental health was driving violence, subway crime, and theft.
The reality is that the city knows how to reduce subway crime, as it has successfully done in the past.
Proactive policing can deter fare evaders, leading to the discovery and confiscation of illegal weapons, or at least discouraging individuals from carrying weapons.
Increased police presence on platforms and trains can keep criminals out of the subway system.
Enforcing Kendra’s Law can compel seriously mentally ill individuals living in the subway system to seek the necessary treatment.
Demanding a solution to the issue of teens endangering themselves by engaging in dangerous activities on moving trains is one thing.
Addressing the gang members and criminals who have turned New York’s subways into their playgrounds is an entirely different challenge.
Seth Barron’s upcoming book “Weaponized” will be released in 2025.
