NEW YORK (WCBS 880) — The NYPD on Tuesday announced it will be sending an additional 644 officers to its subway patrol following a series of attacks within the city’s transit system.
NYPD Transit Chief Kathleen O’Reilly says the department had been considering deploying more officers even before a string of stabbings left two people dead on board the A train over the weekend.
Following the murders and arrest of 21-year-old Rigoberto Lopez, police officials originally said they would be deploying 500 additional officers to the subway.
O’Reilly said the department added 144 more officers so that the public will be able to see a “surge of uniformed presence” in the subway system.
Officers will patrol platforms, entry and exit points and all train cars.
According to a CBS2 News report, Mayor Bill de Blasio has said he is content with the current numbers of NYPD officers and believes it can make a huge difference when it comes to safety on the subways.
However, the number of officers is nowhere near the 1,500 requested by the MTA.
MTA Chairman Pat Foye and NYC Transit Interim President Sarah Feinberg said Sunday that another 1,000 NYPD officers are needed for the subway and bus systems and wrote a letter to both de Blasio and NYPD Commissioner Dermot Shea asking for the additional forces.
“We believe the additional 500 officers you agreed to dedicate to the subway system is an important first step, which will help ease the fears of customers and the heroic transit workers who serve this city every day,” they wrote.
Foye and Feinberg also said they would like to see more mental health services being deployed to the MTA and the city’s transportation network to help those experiencing mental health crises underground.
“Additional policing will not solve the mental health crisis or the fact that so many in the subway system are experiencing homelessness and therefore, more likely to be victimized. We have to put additional resources to these items as well. To that end, we've called on the city to expand the 311 system into the subway so people using the system, including our own employees, are better able to report those who are clearly experiencing a mental health crisis,” Feinberg said on Monday.
Both transit officials agree that the services should be deployed soon, as the city is going to begin a phased return to 24-hour subway service in the coming weeks.
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