NYC subways to get security cameras on train cars amid crime wave

New York City plans to install security cameras in all of the city’s 6,400 subway cars as city officials try to address safety concerns among riders.

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) plans to put two cameras in every subway car over the next three years, announced Governor Kathy Hochul on Tuesday during a news conference in Queens.

“You think Big Brother’s watching you on the subways? You’re absolutely right,” said Hochul. “That is our intent — to get the message out that we’re going to be having surveillance of activities on the subway trains and that is going to give people great peace of mind.”

However, some critics are worried that the new security measure would create a surveillance state in the Big Apple.

“Living in a sweeping surveillance state shouldn’t be the price we pay to be safe. Real public safety comes from investing in our communities, not from omnipresent government surveillance,” said Daniel Schwarz, a technology and privacy strategist with the New York Civil Liberties Union.

“If you’re concerned about this, the best answer is don’t commit any crimes on the subway,” the governor said responding to critics.

The city’s subway system already has more than 10,000 security cameras placed in its 472 stations. Many times, the footage from these cameras has helped identify the suspects of major crimes that have happened in the subway.

Most recently the cameras helped police identify a man who opened fire inside a subway train in Brooklyn in April, injuring ten people.

Similarly to the existing camera’s on the city’s streets, the cameras on the subway trains will not be monitored live. However, Hochul believes that the cameras will act as a deterrent and help reduce crime since people will know they are being recorded.

The MTA received about $5.5 million in state and federal funding to carry out the project. The agency plans to install 200 cameras each month and complete the project in 2025.