Major crime in New York City’s subway system fell to its lowest level in 16 years in 2025, Gov. Kathy Hochul and NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch announced on Dec. 18, even as the state committed an additional $77 million to sustain heightened patrols into 2026.

Over the first 11 months of the year, transit crime was down 5.2% compared with the same period in 2024 and nearly 15% below 2019, pre-pandemic levels, according to NYPD figures cited by the governor’s office. Officials said 2025 was on track to be the second-safest non-pandemic year on record in the transit system, trailing only 2009.

The numbers behind the claim

The sharpest declines came in the most serious categories. Subway murders fell from 10 in 2024 to 4 in 2025 — a 60% drop and the lowest count in five years. Robberies on the rails declined from 455 to 398, a reduction of 57 incidents, or about 13%. Felony assaults, which had driven much of the public anxiety about transit safety, fell roughly 16% over the second half of the year, with November assaults down about 25% from the same month in 2024.

NYPD data published in mid-December showed the last five months of 2025 combined represented the safest such stretch in subway history outside the pandemic years, when ridership collapsed.

“New Yorkers are safer on our subways now than they have been in years,” Tisch said in the announcement. Hochul framed the figures as vindication of the state’s spending: “We know these efforts are working — the numbers speak for themselves.”

What the $77 million buys

The new state commitment covers NYPD overtime needed to keep roughly 600 officers deployed across the subway system each day through 2026. The figure matches the amount allocated in the current state budget, effectively renewing the surge that began earlier in Hochul’s term.

Those officers are deployed under Tisch’s “precision policing” model, which concentrates personnel at a relatively small number of stations and train lines that generate a disproportionate share of incidents, rather than spreading patrols evenly across the 472-station network. The strategy also leaned on overnight platform and train coverage, targeting the late-night hours when riders are most exposed.

The state spending is separate from, and layered on top of, the National Guard and State Police presence Hochul ordered into the system in 2024.

The early-2026 wobble

The year-end celebration was complicated within weeks. Through Feb. 8, 2026, major transit crimes climbed roughly 17% over the same period in 2025 — from about 210 incidents to 246 — with robberies leading the surge at a reported 58% jump, according to NYPD transit data.

City and transit officials cautioned against reading too much into a six-week sample drawn from already small monthly totals, where a swing of a few dozen incidents produces large percentage changes. By the close of the first quarter, the early spike had largely receded: NYPD figures reported by NY1 in April 2026 showed transit crime down about 1% year-over-year, with felony assaults off 6.6%.

A persistent gap between data and perception

The statistical gains continue to run ahead of rider sentiment. High-profile incidents — including assaults and people pushed toward or onto tracks — have driven sustained media coverage that officials acknowledge shapes perception more than aggregate counts do. The state’s funding posture reflects that political reality as much as the underlying numbers: even with crime at multi-year lows, neither Albany nor City Hall has moved to pull officers back out of the system.

Verification

Frequently Asked Questions

How much did subway crime fall in 2025?
Major transit crime over the first 11 months of 2025 was down 5.2% from the same period in 2024 and nearly 15% from 2019, the lowest level in 16 years, per NYPD figures released Dec. 18, 2025. Subway murders fell from 10 in 2024 to 4.
What is the $77 million for?
The state funding covers NYPD overtime to keep roughly 600 officers deployed across the subway system each day in 2026. It matches the amount allocated in the current state budget.
Did crime rise again in early 2026?
Yes, briefly. Through Feb. 8, 2026, major transit crimes climbed about 17% over the same stretch in 2025, led by robberies. By the end of the first quarter, transit crime had settled back to roughly 1% below 2025, with felony assaults down 6.6%.
Who runs subway policing strategy?
NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch, retained under Mayor Zohran Mamdani, oversees the 'precision policing' deployment that concentrates officers at high-crime stations and on overnight trains.