Transit-related crime surged by nearly 20% in February, as frigid weather conditions led the NYPD to temporarily halt the removal of rule-breaking passengers from the subway system, officials reported on Monday.
Statistics from the NYPD revealed over 190 criminal incidents occurred on the subway last month, marking an 18.5% increase compared to February 2025.
The rise in crime coincided with the department’s decision to suspend the ejection of passengers for rule violations, a measure taken in response to the freezing temperatures that enveloped New York City throughout much of February.
During this period, police officers removed 61% fewer disorderly passengers from the subways compared to the previous month of January, as detailed by the NYPD.
“This increase happened during a time of record low temperatures and snowfall in February, which altered commuting patterns,” the NYPD explained in a statement. “The department paused ejections related to rule violations due to the severe weather conditions.”
Among the 192 reported subway crimes last month, approximately 27% were felony assaults, while over half, specifically 52%, were related to non-violent grand larcenies, according to the NYPD’s data.
The more serious crimes included a 41-year-old man was shot dead on the southbound platform of the 170th Street B and D subway station in Bronx during an argument on Feb. 9, cops said.
A few days later, on Feb. 12, a Yeshiva student, 20, was assaulted at the West 181st Street and St. Nicholas Avenue 1 train stop, according to police.
Felony assaults against NYPD officers in transit also jumped about 42% — from 12 to 17 attacks – last month compared to February 2025, the department said.
Old Man Winter blasted the city with low temperatures below-freezing 19 days in February, according to AccuWeather numbers.
The month was capped off with a major blizzard that buried most of the five boroughs with close to two feet of snow.
Mayor Zohran Mamdani faced backlash over the outdoor deaths of at least 19 New Yorkers during January’s Winter Storm Fern and its unbearably cold aftermath.
The shocking transit crime data came as the NYPD hailed continued record-low numbers of shootings, gunshot victims and murders in the first two months of the year.
Overall, there were 97 victims across 83 shootings, and 32 murders in January and February, according to NYPD data.
Those record-setting numbers helped fuel nearly 8% drop in major crimes in February compared to the same time span in 2025.
“Once again, the NYPD is demonstrating how targeted, data driven policing is reducing crime and keeping communities safe,” said NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch in a statement.Â
