NYC subway returns to 24 hour service one year after pandemic shutdown as NYPD deploys an extra 250 cops to combat huge surge in violent crime on the service
New York City resumed 24-hour subway operations on Monday and is set to lift virtually all coronavirus restrictions on Wednesday, but it comes as the city is experiencing a spike in crime, including on the trains.
The subway was closed overnight for cleaning during overnight hours since the early days of the coronavirus pandemic last year.
Long famous for their all-night operation, the system was shut down between 1 and 5am on April 30, 2020, so trains and stations could be disinfected. The overnight closure was scaled back to 2 to 4am in February.
The change was also intended to make it easier to remove homeless people from trains, where many had been spending the night.
On Monday, Mayor Bill de Blasio promised an extra 250 NYPD officers would be deployed to specifically patrol the subway stations and trains in an effort to restore passenger confidence and safety.
There are more than 2,500 officers on the transit system, with 500 surge officers which will now be backup up by the additional 250 extra special deployment cops.
The extra 250 officers is the highest level of NYPD presence in more than two decades, according to Mayor Bill de Blasio. Police patrols in the subway system have increased after a recent spate of violent crimes on trains
The subway was closed overnight for cleaning during overnight hours since the early days of the coronavirus pandemic last year Subways were shut down between 1 and 5am on April 30, 2020, so trains and stations could be disinfected. Police officers stand inside a subway station in Manhattan on May 17, 2021 in New York City
The Mayor is promising an extra 250 officers to be deployed across the NYC Subway System
The numbers of those riding the subway reached two million riders on April 8, the highest since the pandemic began.
Ridership is still down from the pre-pandemic average daily ridership of 5.4 million people.
'This is a critical moment in New York City's recovery, and at the MTA we have a singular focus right now, and that is bringing riders back to mass transit,' said MTA chairman Pat Foye.
'This goes hand in hand with providing a safe and secure environment where people feel comfortable to ride,' he added.
But the reopening comes with a worrying spike in crime on the subway.
On Friday, there were five people were injured in a series of slashings throughout the system.
Three teenagers have been charged in connection with the unprovoked attacks.
One man, 48, was stabbed in the eye and needed surgery while three others were slashed in the face in the early hours of Friday morning. Another described waking up to being punched in the face.
In another attack, the victim's wallet was stolen, and his phone was thrown on the tracks, police said.
The first three attacks happened over a 10-minute span starting at 4:20am on the same train. The fourth attack was reported about 30 minutes later, but police said all four were committed by the same suspects.
NYPD crime figures show felony assault was up 35.6% in April from last year, murder has increased 15.8% and robbery had soared by 28.6%
Friday's attack happened two days after four commuters were beaten over the course of three hours in unprovoked subway attacks, including a victim who was spit on and slashed in the face.
Sarah Feinberg, interim MTA president blamed Mayor de Blasio for creating a culture of violence in the subways.
These 'very serious' armed robbery and slashing incidents 'all seemingly could have been prevented by a uniformed presence on each of these platforms,' Feinberg said.
'The responsibility for these vicious attacks does not fall on an already strapped police department, it falls on City Hall and the individuals who are taking advantage of the mayor's negligence on the issue,' she said.
Police officers walk inside a subway station in Manhattan on Monday in New York City
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio speaks with police officers on the plqtform of the F subway line. Mayor de Blasio visited the subway to address the growing concern about crime in NYC
'If he needed a wake-up call, this is it. Enough is enough. The mayor is risking New York's recovery every time he lets these incidents go by without meaningful action.'
Last week's violence on the subways were the latest in a rash of random assaults in a year-long trend sparked by the pandemic.
Police leaders in the city previously say the random street and subway attacks is returning New York to its 1980s nadir, when lawlessness and murder were commonplace.
There was a tough crackdown in the 1980s, which lowered crime levels made neighborhoods that were previously known as no-go areas safe to walk around, even at night.
But now, there are fears the city is returning to the bad old days, including areas like today's attacks in Midtown Manhattan, which have generally been considered to be safe.
On Monday, the NYPD announced that it would be adding 250 extra cops to patrol the subway system.
As the New York subway returned to a 24-hour service on Monday that was suspended during the pandemic, new contingents of NYPD police have been deployed underground because of an alarming increase in rider assaults and workers who are stabbed, beaten, stolen or thrown under the train
There used to be 4,300 cops that were in the subway system in the 90s. The network will now have it largest police presence in more than 25 years with 3,250 officers on patrol
It will see the network having the largest police presence in more than 25 years.
The additional cops will bring the total number of officers securing the subways to 3,250.
''Today we're announcing an additional 250 officers on a special deployment on top of the previous 500 on top of the previous 2,500,' New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said.
'We're going to take officers and put them in the right places in the subways at the right time, particularly at peak times of ridership,' de Blasio said.
As the city gradually begins to emerge from the coronavirus crisis and unemployment falls, but crime statistics are far from improving.
The latest figures, released on May 9, showed 505 victims of shootings since the beginning of January, the highest in 10 years. It was up from 275 for the same period in 2020.
There have been 146 murders so far this year, up 40 percent from 2019 when 104 people were killed and up 27 percent on last year.
Officially, crime in the subway is down 43 percent, but many experts note that is misleading as ridership plummeted with the pandemic.
The reopening of the subway comes just days before limits on occupancy are to be scrapped for many business and cultural venues in the city including shops, restaurants, cinemas and museums.
They will be allowed to welcome as many people as they want provided six feet of social distancing is maintained.
The six-feet rule does not apply if all customers provide proof of vaccination or a negative test.
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced that New York will adopt the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) guidance on masks from Wednesday.
A new deployment of NYPD officers have been deployed underground because of an alarming increase in assaults both on passengers and workers
The CDC ruled last week that fully vaccinated people no longer need to wear masks outdoors or indoors.
The announcement caused confusion because the policy is left for the relevant local authorities or employers to decide.
There is also no way of knowing whether unmasked people have been vaccinated.
More than 60 percent of New Yorkers have received at least one vaccine dose, according to official data.
'Masks will still be required on public transit, in schools and some communal settings. Private venues may require masks,' said Cuomo.
'Unvaccinated people should continue to wear a mask,' he added.
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