New York Governor Kathy Hochul announced a new $77 million plan to curb subway crime, while the MTA has also begun installing “spikes” on some of its turnstiles stop the toll dodgers who cost the transit agency hundreds of millions of dollars a year in lost revenue.
The new spike units consist of metal sheets with sharp edges mounted on the bars between the turnstiles intended to prevent cashiers from using the manual gates for leverage when jumping.
But the spikes are not very sharp, and the weak can still put their hands on the spikes and jump over them – or duck under the bars. Spikes have been installed at Manhattan's Lexington Avenue 59th Street Station, which serves the N, R, W, 4, 5 and 6 trains.
New subway “spikes” pictured in New York City. (FOX 5 NEW YORK)
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Skipping the toll is very easy, especially in subway stations that don't have many turnstiles. One passenger told New York Post the new spikes were “foolish and stupid” and a waste of money.
In addition, the MTA also spends about $1 million a month on unarmed private security guards to stop toll collectors. Fox 5but the guards have no power to arrest defaulters.
Hochul's traffic evader plan is focused on adding modern high-speed stations to 40 stations, and it's unclear whether the spike on 59th Street is part of the plan.
Hochul said fare evaders cost the MTA about $700 million a year in lost revenue. About $500 million of that is mine metro systemwhile the rest is associated with the bus system.
“I say it's time to crack down on the shameless, toll dodgers who are so insecure that they just go through with the other payers, they feel like, why should I worry,” Hochul said at the Grand Central press conference on Thursday. his $77 million project.
New York Governor Kathy Hochul unveils details of her plan to have hundreds of police officers stand by overnight in New York City's subways on January 16, 2025. (Selcuk Acar/Anadolu via Getty Images)
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Generally a crime the city has declined, Hochul said, but the recent high-profile incidents of the transportation system attacked people you don't know every day.
An illegal immigrant from Guatemala is accused of burning a woman and burning him to death in a subway train last month, when on New Year's Eve a man was pushed in front of a moving train but survived miraculously.
There has been intense violence in the subways in recent weeks and Hochul said 750 more police officers will patrol the metro system on top of the 2,500 already assigned. Another 300 will be allocated to trains that run between 9pm and 5am.
“So basically this means we have doubled the number of law enforcement personnel New York City metro system in one year,” Hochul said.
A subway dodger turns under the curve, left, while another commuter swims to pay, right. (Michael Dorgan/Fox News Digital)
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New metro barriers will also be installed on the platforms of more than 100 other stations by the end of 2025 to prevent straphangers from falling or being pushed onto the tracks.
The governor also announced funding to install LED lights at all metro stations across the system to increase visibility across the stations.
“Let's go back to basics, they served their purpose,” Hochil said of the obstacles. “They are there. If someone wants to stand behind them when the train is approaching and give you that feeling of security that every New Yorker should have.
Hochul also said that the 24/7 “Reception Center” near the network stations will be expanded to create spaces for homeless people.