January marked a concerning start to the new year for the MTA’s NYC Transit system, as subway crime ticked upward while the number of summonses for fare evasion and other violations dropped.
According to the latest NYPD data, major felonies increased by 6.1% last month compared to January 2025. There were 174 major crimes in transit, including rape, robbery and felony assault, up from 164 during the same month last year.
However, the increase in crime did not lead to more arrests or summonses. Last month, police made only 2,785 arrests within the transit system; the previous January, when crime was lower, over 2,800 arrests were made—a difference of 3.1%.
Transit Adjudication Bureau (TAB) summonses, which refer to turnstile jumping, smoking in the subway and other transit violations, were down 15.6% during the same period. MTA data revealed that 8,024 TAB summonses were issued last month, down from 9,512 handed out in January 2025.
Meanwhile, antisemitic hate crimes went up in the system, according to the statistics, with eight reported incidents this January versus two during the same month last year.
The release of the statistics comes on the heels of several high-profile crimes that plagued the subway system this month, including the fatal shooting of a man on the platform of the 170th Street station in the Bronx on Feb. 10.
Despite the fewer arrests and TAB enforcement, criminal summonses — in which suspects must appear in court — increased by 11% last month compared to January 2025.
“Even though we are up slightly versus 2025, January 2026 was the fifth-lowest recorded start to the year for felony crimes in transit in the past 20 years,” the MTA reported in its data review of safety and security. “Our collaborative efforts to combat crime patterns within our transit system has continued to show effect year over year.”
The agency added that it will continue to work with law enforcement on “quality-of-life and crime control initiatives and hope to see this downtrend continue throughout 2026.”
Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Gov. Kathy Hochul, alongside other state and city leaders, announced on Jan. 6 a decline in crime across the Big Apple. They highlighted 2025 as the “safest year” in the subway system since 2009, excluding the pandemic years.
Local transit advocates applauded the administrations’ efforts to curb crime.
“Riders deserve safe transit whenever and wherever they are riding the MTA system,” Brian Fritsch, associate director of the Permanent Citizens Advisory Committee to the MTA, said. “We appreciate Governor Hochul and Mayor Mamdani’s commitments to keeping safety at the top of their list of priorities, especially New York State’s continued investments in police officers on every train overnight and the expansion of the SCOUT program, which we believe will pay dividends over time.”
Danny Pearlstein, policy and communications director at the Riders Alliance, said public transit should be “safe, welcoming and inclusive” of all New Yorkers, commuters and visitors.
“A multifaceted approach to safety should include a granular attention to the details of what crimes occur, when and where,” he said. “During an extended cold period like this winter, where more people are riding, transit officials need to also keep the quality of service in sight and take steps to reduce riders’ anxiety and frustration owing to crowding and delays.”
