NYC subway safety plan gets going after a violent weekend
New York’s latest plan to tackle both crime and homelessness in subways was rolling into action Monday after police logged more than a half-dozen attacks in trains and stations over the holiday weekend.
Mayor Eric Adams’ plan, announced Friday, involves sending more police, mental health clinicians and social service outreach workers into the subways. Adams; spokesperson Fabien Levy said Monday that a “phased-in” implementation was beginning.
The plan notes that many people who use the subways for shelter need help, not handcuffs. But it says police will crack down on sleeping, littering, smoking, doing drugs or hanging out in the system. It calls for clearing all passengers out of trains at the ends of their lines, an approach that has waxed and waned over the years.