OCTOBER 9 — GOVERNOR HOCHUL SORTS OUT TRANSIT, ANTI TERRORISM FUNDING

Hits: 139

New York State and NYPD’s Investments In Subway Safety Continue; Transit Crime Down 30 Percent in September

Governor Hochul Successfully Fought To Restore $187 Million in Homeland Security Grant Funding Last Week

Governor Kathy Hochul today called out Washington Republicans for cutting critical safety and security funding for New York’s mass transit system. The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) had been slated to receive $34 million in federal Transit Security Grant Program funds, which support essential counter-terror and transit security functions. Last week, lawmakers were notified that the MTA was to be the only agency of 21 applicants nationwide to not receive federal security dollars via this program.

“Keeping New Yorkers safe, from our streets to our subways, is my highest priority,” Governor Hochul said. “Since 9/11, New York has relied on federal support to ensure that our transit system has the counterterrorism resources it needs to keep millions of riders safe every single day. The shocking actions of Washington Republicans to slash these funds and defund the police put New York City at risk.

We will not tolerate these cuts; New York will take every action available to us — including the courts — to ensure the MTA gets this critical funding to keep millions of riders safe.”

The Transit Security Grant Program was started after 9/11. Administered by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), these grants support critical functions to keep mass transit systems safe from security threats. The MTA carries a significant portion of the United States’ mass transit riders, with over 6 million daily trips taken on Metro-North, the Long Island Rail Road, and New York City Transit. In addition to approximately $12 million which would go to the NYPD, the MTA had planned to utilize this year’s grant funding to support the following public safety and counter-terror investments:

  • Two cybersecurity projects, extending cyber visibility into MTA’s key systems, and a cyber lab to develop protections and vet operational technology systems.
  • The procurement and deployment of approximately 330 tactical cellular cameras to replace & expand upon current unsecure offline devices in a cost-effective manner.
  • The expansion of MTA weapons of mass destruction chemical detection system across 9 subway lines and a commuter rail terminal.
  • The TSA mandated frontline security awareness training of 16,000 MTA employees.
  • 374 deployments of MTAPD counterterrorism teams.
  • The procurement of 3 MTAPD counterterrorism coordination and response vehicles.
  • The installation of several hundred cameras, access control points, and laser intrusion detection systems at a major subway complex.

Comments are closed.