FIRST ON amNY | Hochul to expand NYC subway mental health teams, add platform barriers to more stations

Gov. Kathy Hochul announced in her State of the State address on Tuesday a new round of support for increased subway security.

The details, which were shared with amNewYork in advance of her Jan. 13 speech in Albany, include a significant expansion of teams designed to assist individuals in mental health crises on New York City’s subways and the installation of platform edge barriers at many more stations throughout the system.

The announcement comes along with Hochul’s pledge to fund another year of stepped-up overnight NYPD subway patrols — to the tune of $77 million. It also follows crime on the rails in 2025, falling to its lowest level in 16 years.

During Hochul’s annual policy-laden address, she revealed that she plans to increase funding for the Subway Co-Response Outreach Teams (SCOUT) program from the $20 million it received last year, in order to expand the initiative and pay for adding platform edge barriers at 85 more stations over the next year.

“Keeping New Yorkers safe on our streets and our subways is my highest priority, and this year we will build on our strategy that produced the safest year in the subway in a generation by doubling down on what works,” Hochul said in a statement.

Hochul has made ensuring the subways are not only safe but also feel safe one of her top priorities for the underground system over the past few years.

“Increased state investment in subway safety will give riders peace of mind on platforms, continue the historic reduction in crime that we saw in 2025, and ensure that New Yorkers with severe mental illness sheltering in the subway system get the treatment and care they need,” she said.

SCOUT, which is a partnership between the state and city, currently sends 10 teams throughout the subways to speak to those with severe mental health issues and offer them services, including shelter or psychiatric treatment. The squads — comprised of MTA police officers and city Department of Homeless Services clinical staffers — do have the ability to involuntarily hospitalize those deemed to be a danger to themselves or others.

Removals under the program have led to 7,500 nights of inpatient hospital stays, with “virtually no law enforcement outcomes,” according to the governor’s office.

Under Hochul’s expansion, the program will grow by 50% from 10 to 15 teams, with the goal of reaching more parts of the subway and operating more nimbly.

Lisa Daglian, executive director of the Permanent Citizens Advisory Committee to the MTA, voiced support for the expansion in a statement.

“Governor Hochul is again demonstrating her commitment to transit riders—and all New Yorkers – with her proposal to expand the SCOUT program,” Daglian said. “Addressing the slate of needs for people experiencing mental heath crises through this transformative program has made a real difference, helping those who need it most while improving the riding experience for millions of New Yorkers every day.”

However, the governor’s planned SCOUT expansion could come into conflict with new Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s pledge to “end co-response teams,” which is embedded in his proposal to establish a new Department of Community Safety. Mamdani’s proposed city agency would completely remove police from responding to those in mental health crisis, handing the responsibility solely to mental health professionals.

Hochul also plans to make the subways safer by adding platform-edge barriers to 85 more stations throughout the system, bringing the number of stations with guardrails up from 115 to 200 this year.

The gates are intended to decrease the risk of straphangers falling or getting pushed onto the subway tracks — though they only cover certain portions of the platform edge, unlike the more comprehensive glass barriers with sliding doors that are common in other cities.

The governor’s pledge comes after she committed in her 2025 State of the State address to add platform edge barriers to over 100 stations by the end of last year. Those stations are spread across the 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, F, M, and L lines.

Hochul spokesperson Sean Butler said that it is too soon to say where the new barriers will be installed.