The Perils of Platforms: Subway Safety

By: Paulina Milewska, Class IV

Photo Credit: Pixabay

Subway safety. It is a topic relevant to all of today’s New Yorkers. It shows up on our screens in the form of news stories. It shows up in our lives through announcements in subway stations. We at Brooklyn Latin know this topic well. Our local L train is known in our community to foster delays and late passes. But, how do we protect more than our attendance? What about our safety? 

The MTA is an organization based in New York City with the goal of providing safe and efficient transportation for all. However, according to The Vital City, as of this year subway assaults have tripled since 2009. This surge has been concentrated at stations with lower ridership. Some of our local stations, such as Graham Avenue and Grand Street, can be characterized as such due to their lack of available transfers. In fact, one notable incident from this school year happened on February 28th, 2025, when a man was stabbed in the shoulder and bitten in the head at Graham Ave.

Anjali Artz, a Class IV witness of the scene, recalls, “it was just a normal day, we were going to mock trial.” The student boarded the L train at the Grand Street station around 3pm. Considering that a typical school day at TBLS ends at 2:40pm, the train was filled with students returning home from long days or on their way to extracurricular activities. Elsa Lewinger, another Class IV discip who was aboard the train with Anjali, tells that she only realized something was wrong when her friend started “freaking out,” because “a lot of people were going towards [their/the right] side of the train.” The two did not notice or suspect anything was wrong at first. 

What they didn’t know at the moment was that a man had just been stabbed and bitten due to a verbal dispute regarding a seat, and the sudden movement of people inside of the train was a reaction to the scene. The two students only found this out when someone on the train who was closer to the action told them. Once the train arrived at Graham Avenue, people poured out. Anjali and Elsa rushed to the next car, looking for safety. During this evacuation, Anjali saw briefly what the man looked like, sharing that he looked “taller and bigger,” as well as confirming that he was wearing all black and a ski mask, walking back and forth. Police entered the station and dealt with the injured victim, on-the-run suspect, and frantic witnesses. However, frustration arose when the situation took about an hour to deal with, causing delays on the L train in both directions. Beyond feelings of frustration, this incident raised questions about the efficiency and safety of the MTA.

What Can I Do?

Below is a list of easy and achievable things you can do to better your chances of safety on the subway and bus: 

• Refrain from turning on noise-cancellation on devices such as headphones and airpods. Although the appeal is there, the feature can, in consequence, make you less aware of your surroundings. This makes you especially susceptible to property theft.

• Close all pockets and keep valuable belongings in secure places. This will also make you less likely to experience theft.

• Stand behind the yellow line. It is there for a reason. It lowers your chances of falling or being pushed into the tracks.

• Don’t engage in verbal harassment, and ignore it when targeted at you. If necessary, alert an MTA employee for assistance, as dealing with it yourself heightens the risk of escalation.

• Stay awake! It can be tempting to fall asleep after a long day, but your belongings will thank you.

Please remember that it is common and normal to feel distress after hearing about events like these, and school counselors are always available to talk. It is important to do what we can to prevent them from happening again; more safety tips can be found with The Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism at CUNY and the NYPD.