The MTA just installed platform barriers at one subway station

Over the weekend, the MTA installed barriers at the edge of the subway platform on 191 Street station in Washington Heights, which services the 1 train, as part of a larger effort to increase safety on the subway. It’s the first part of a pilot program that will test if the barriers are able to improve rider safety and could potentially expand to more stations.

Among other factors, the MTA will test to see if the presence of the barriers interferes with the flow of commuter traffic. Its main purpose, though, is to make sure that riders feel less unsafe. As part of this latest pilot program in New York, barriers will soon be set up at West 8 St-NY Aquarium F and Q station in Brooklyn, the Clark Street 2 and 3 station in Brooklyn, and a fourth station that has yet to be determined.

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"This is a terrific move by the MTA to increase passenger safety as well as perception of safety," Gridlock Sam Schwartz, Longtime Transportation Engineer, said in a press release. "You could be sure I will be standing behind these barriers wherever they are provided."

In terms of cost, the MTA says they funded this effort "with existing maintenance resources using in-house labor and materials."

Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine said on Threads that he's been pushing for the installation of "full platform screen doors in NYC's subway." "But in meantime MTA is piloting a relatively quick and easy fix: railings between where the car doors open," he added.

The MTA previously said they'd install platform barriers at the 7 at Times Square, L at Third Avenue, and the E stop at Sutphin Boulevard station in Queens. However, they didn't set a construction timeline for those projects.

Many New Yorkers can relate to the experience of being scared to stand on the edge of the platform for fear of being shoved. Last October, a 30 year-old woman was pushed onto the tracks at the Fifth Avenue-53rd Street subway station and suffered serious injuries.

But the fear of being pushed onto the tracks has been ongoing. In 2022, Michelle Go was shoved into an oncoming train at the 42nd Street-Times Square station and died. That year, 88 New Yorkers died on the tracks, either from accidental falls, suicides, or being pushed.

Although the number of subway deaths went down in 2023, many New Yorkers remain cautious, and it’s not uncommon to see people standing against the wall when a train is pulling into the station. Although riding the subway remains relatively safe, considering that more than 3 million people ride the subway each day with little to no incidents, many New Yorkers still feel uneasy standing on the subway platform. 

Other cities around the world, including Tokyo and Hong Kong, have barriers throughout their subway systems.