NEW YORK (WCBS 880) — Mayor Eric Adams on Tuesday admitted that he does not feel safe while riding the subways in New York City following a series of violent attacks.
Just three days after 40-year-old Michelle Alyssa Go was fatally struck by a train after she was allegedly shoved onto the tracks by a homeless man at the Times Square station, Adams said he understands why people are fearful of the system.
“We know we have a job to do,” the mayor said on the state of the subways.
Adams noted that he is a frequent subway rider, and he sees the same thing that every day New Yorkers are dealing with.
“Day One, January 1, when I took the train, I saw the homelessness, the yelling, the screaming early in the morning, crimes right outside on the platform,” he said.
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“We’re going to drive down crime, and we’re going to make sure New Yorkers feel safe in our subway system. And they don’t feel that way now. I don’t feel that way when I take the train every day,” Adams added.
The mayor has spoken about public safety for months, but Tuesday’s comments was the first time he publicly shared his fears.
His words were also a stark contrast to his comments made over the weekend, in which he insisted the subway system was safe for all New Yorkers and that police were doing an “amazing” job keeping the transit network secure.
Those comments were made as many New Yorkers expressed their own fears of the subways following Go’s death and a second incident hours later in which a 30-year-old man was stabbed while waiting on a platform.
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MTA Chairman Janno Lieber praised the mayor Tuesday for his change of tune, noting that he hears the concerns from customers all the time.
“I think Mayor Adams is showing that he gets it,” he said. “He gets how New Yorkers are feeling.”
Lieber also went on to call the Times Square attack “unconscionable” and “outrageous,” noting that better mental health services are desperately needed.
“I hope that we can get those people services quicker, in greater numbers and faster, so they can get out of the system and people will feel that that is a change,” Lieber said.
According to police, 61-year-old Simon Martial has been charged in connection with Go’s death. He allegedly admitted to the crime outside the Midtown South Precinct, telling reporters, “Yes, I did. I’m God. I can do it.”
Martial turned himself in less than a half hour after the crime, according to police. He is reportedly “known to the department” and has had three emotionally disturbed encounters with officers.
This month, Adams and Gov. Kathy Hochul announced plans to boost subway policing and outreach to homeless people in the streets and trains. It remains unclear if any adjustments are being made to those plans following the Times Square incident.
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