NEW YORK (1010 WINS) -- Armed guards placed in the subway by the MTA to discourage fare evasion have already saved the agency tens of thousands of dollars at two Brooklyn stations in recent months, officials said Tuesday as fare-beaters are on track to cost the MTA a half-billion dollars this year alone.
The private security guards were first deployed at the Myrtle–Wyckoff Avenues station in Bushwick. They’ve since been expanded to the nearby Halsey Street station and are now netting the MTA about $100,000 a month in additional revenue by discouraging scofflaws, officials said at an MTA board meeting.
“We launched two types of guard pilots over the last six months,” MTA safety official Robert Diehl told board members.
Diehl said the pilots include “armed guards in front of MetroCard vending machines, which make it easier for our customers to pay the fare by reducing vandalism of the MVMs and reducing the machine repair downtime.”
Additionally, private unarmed guards have been added at a dozen select stations across the transit system. Their job is to make sure the exit gates stay closed, unless they’re being used appropriately by people who have items like strollers, luggage or wheelchairs.
“Once that gate is open, it’s like Black Friday at Macy’s,” Diehl said. “Holding that gate is imperative to stopping half the amount of fare evasion in our stations.”
None of the guards can make arrests, but officials said their mere presence has been deterring people who may otherwise hop turnstiles or sneak in through opened exit gates to avoid paying their fair share.
MTA Chief Safety and Security Officer Patrick Warren said the guards are there to “keep people honest” as the MTA is on track to lose nearly $500 million in 2022 alone from people riding the rails for free.
Diehl said the guards could also prevent serious crimes from happening.
“Once you stop those small offenses, it doesn’t go to the bigger offenses,” Diehl said. “I mean even to the point of at turnstiles, you know, stopping people for fare evasion, have yielded people with guns.”
It's not only the guards that are cracking down on fare evasion. The NYPD's fare-evasion arrests have been up 97% this year compared to 2021, according to the department.
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