NEW YORK (1010 WINS) — Thirteen labor unions and leaders of the Metropolitan Transit Authority have called for Mayor Bill de Blasio to increase police presence and deploy mental health teams to the city’s subway system for a “strong and safe mass transit system."
“Right now, many of our members don’t feel safe riding or working in mass transit. This is unacceptable. And we know that as a city, we can do better,” officials wrote in the letter.
Additionally, the letter asks for the mayor’s administration to add the number of uniformed officers in the subway system, “at least in the short term.”
The letter appears to be in line with the MTA's request for additional help to make the transit system safer for riders and workers.
"We're making this request and the unions are making this request on behalf of our customers - millions of them, and tens of thousands of transit workers," MTA Chairman Pat Foye told 1010 WINS on Monday.
According to Foye, that the transit system has "to make sure the system is safe from crime and harassment" after a survey revealed there was a "dramatic decrease in satisfaction from customers in the sense of security."
The unions are also asking the mayor's administration to work with the MTA in order to pinpoint the stations needing the most help with mental health and drug use in order to deploy mental health teams to these locations.
“No one should be afraid to use these basic transit services, especially the heroic women and men in our ranks, who have sacrificed so much to keep the City going during one of its darkest hours,” the letter added.
Interim NYC Transit President Sarah Feinberg also called for more NYPD officials in the subways after recent attacks on transit workers, saying that “it makes a lot of sense” that labor unions are calling for more police presence.
“Now is really an important moment for New York to come back,” Feinberg added.