MTA chief wants to ban violent criminals from riding New York trains and buses

Violent criminals should be banned from riding MTA trains and buses, said MTA CEO Janno Lieber. At a breakfast at the Manhattan Institute, the head of the agency noted that currently "the subway ban law is applied in narrow cases." New York law limits subway bans to sex offenders and people who assault workers. Lieber said MTA officials would like to see judicial powers expanded to allow anyone convicted of a violent crime to be banned from rails and buses. 

"If someone is a victim on the subway or on a bus, they shouldn't have to see the person who attacked or harmed them two months later. I want to see more bans," Lieber said.

Underground crime is up 40% this year compared to 2021, according to the latest statistics available. However, according to the NYPD, the likelihood of experiencing crime is still higher than before the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Violent crime also increased, especially murder. The NYPD recorded eight subway homicides in 2021 and eight in 2022 through the end of October—up from three in 2019 and the highest annual total in 25 years.

"The subway should be safe for everyone. The ban has been in place for many years, but has not had a significant impact," said Riders Alliance spokesman Danny Pearlstein.