Sean Duffy warned the MTA that it could improve transport security or risk losing federal funds, citing concerns about crime and fare avoidance amid wider policy disputes.
U.S. Transport Secretary Sean Duffy warned New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Agency (MTA) that they could lose important federal funds unless they provided a comprehensive plan to address crime and safety issues with the city’s subway and bus systems.
The letter directs the MTA to submit a detailed report by March 31 on the steps it is taking to improve passenger and workers’ security, or risk enforcement measures from the Federal Transportation Agency (FTA).
“The trends in violent crime, homelessness and other threats to public safety in one of our nation’s most prominent metro systems are unacceptable,” Duffy said in a press release.
“We have policies in crime for years and our department is stepping in to restore order, and commuters are tired of feeling they have to risk their safety to get jobs, go to school or travel around the city.
The directive requires the MTA to provide information on plans to fight crime, protect traffic workers and prevent fare avoidance.
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Agents should document the attacks of transport workers and trends in action to prevent them, including emission training, video surveillance deployment, and police patrols. You should also report the latest data and mitigation efforts related to fare avoidance.
Additionally, the letter calls for a summary overview of the MTA taken to deal with criminal activities, including assault on passengers, subway surfing and suicide. Agents must also provide a breakdown of funding sources used for security initiatives, including federal and non-federal contributions.
Last year, the FTA issued an order requiring major transport agencies to assess and mitigate attacks by transport workers. The MTA was one of nine agencies ordered to submit documents explaining how it dealt with safety risks to the workforce.
The Trump administration’s move is in line with broader efforts to enhance security for key transportation systems across the country. Duffy showed that similar scrutiny could be extended to the Chicago and Washington transport systems if no improvements were made.
MTAs, which operate New York City’s subway, bus and local rail networks, rely on a combination of local, state and federal funding. The agency’s five-year capital plan through 2029 includes an estimated $14 billion in federal grants and funding. Possible federal dollar withholding could have a significant impact on planned upgrades and improvements in services.
John McCarthy, chief of agency policy and external relations, said he was pleased to meet with Duffy to discuss the agency’s MTA and the NYPD’s efforts to reduce crime and fare avoidance.
“The good news is that the numbers are moving in the right direction. Crime has declined by 40% compared to the same period in 2020 just before the pandemic, and so far in 2025 there have been fewer major daily crimes than in a year in transit,” he said.
“In addition, in the second half of last year, metro fare avoidance fell by 25% after a dramatic increase during Covid.”
Duffy also said high-profile crimes, including a man who burned out on the train in December and shoved into a truck in January, led to anxiety among riders.
“Civic citizens have publicly expressed their support for expanding care for individuals suffering from mental illness, in order to specifically address some of these safety concerns,” Duffy writes.
Authorities have implemented strategies in recent years to step up several security measures, deploy additional police officers in the transport system, and curb fare avoidance.
New York Governor Kathy Hochul stationed members of the National Guard at some of the city’s busiest metro stations last year to stop crime.
However, the number of attacks on the transport system has increased from 373 in 2019 to 579 in 2024, according to the New York City Police Department, despite major felonies having declined in recent years.
Highly popular attacks on passengers, such as individuals being pushed onto tracks and assaulted on trains, have fueled public concern.
The MTA is facing another March 21 deadline to comply with a federal order to shut down Manhattan’s crowd pricing system, a traffic initiative designed to reduce traffic and generate transportation funds.
The administration’s letter to the MTA does not refer to crowd pricing. The two issues reflect the broader policy disputes over city transportation management.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
