What’s so dangerous? More and more people are ‘just’ pushed onto the track. Twice in the last month alone. In the case of Michelle Go (40), a subway train just pulled up and she died on the spot. Rawleigh Thompson (62) had the same thing happen to him, but miraculously he can still tell the story. In both cases, the perpetrator was a confused bum, hanging out at the subway station in question.
The fear is there
You understand: the fear is good for subway travelers in New York. Likewise with me. Where I used to whistle on the metro, I am now constantly alert to my surroundings. I absolutely don’t wait near the edge of the platform anymore, turn off my music and if possible I lean against a wall or pillar to make sure no one can push me from behind. And when it’s dark outside, I avoid subway stations altogether.
To prevent such incidents of violence, the MTA – the New York equivalent of the NS – has now decided to test platform screen doors. They do that at three stations. If you like it, the rest will follow in 2024. This measure has been suggested for years, but was never tested because it would be inconvenient and too expensive. It is certainly expensive: about seven billion dollars. And that for only 128 stations, because it is not even possible to place gates at the other 344 stops.
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