Syringes and trash: Images like this one from the 191st Street station have local leaders searching for solutions to problems on trains and stations that New Yorkers say have gotten worse.
“Everywhere, but it’s even more serious here, it needs more cleaning,” said a neighbor.
Violence on public transportation is also a concern for residents of Upper Manhattan.
“There are too many things going on that you don’t feel safe taking a train,” said another user.
Now Councilmember Carmen De La Rosa hopes to do something about it and make improvements to the 181st and 191st Street stations.
“It’s difficult when you’re walking with your boy, with your girl and you see a syringe, how do you explain to them what that syringe is for and why it’s there,” said the councilwoman.
After walking through the tunnels earlier this week with various city agencies, including the MTA, the Department of Sanitation, and the NYPD, De La Rosa announced a plan of action.
“The following are my preliminary findings and action plan directly following the multi-agency tour of (1)(A) 181 and 191 train stations and tunnels,” the councilwoman wrote in a social media post with a link to your plan of action.
The following are my preliminary takeaways and action plan directly following the multiagency walkthrough of the (1)(A) 181st & 191st train stations and tunnels: 🧵 pic.twitter.com/5yeEzpBoOL
– Carmen De La Rosa (@CnDelarosa) February 15, 2022
“We noticed that there were many people living under the trains. I saw a bottle that had human urine on the train rails, I saw clothes, I saw syringes,” De La Rosa added.
The councilwoman calls for more frequent cleanings in the tunnels, the installation of security cameras in the 191st Street tunnel, and the coordination of resources and services to help the homeless and mentally ill.
“There was a commitment that first the twelve community meeting was going to be part of its permanent agenda, that all the agencies come monthly to talk about the work, what is happening in those tunnels? We had a dialogue about who is responsible for which part and how we can duplicate the necessary services.”
Transit riders say these efforts are welcome.
“There is too much rubbish, too many rats on the train. The government needs to do something,” said another user.
De La Rosa hopes to see these improvements as soon as possible. Meanwhile, the Department of Transportation has a $25 million plan to renovate the 191st Street station by 2025.
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