The Dangers of Train Surfing

Subway surfing or sometimes called train surfing is the act of riding on top or outside of a moving train. It is an extremely risky and dangerous thing to take part in and is currently rising in NYC. Even though it is a risk to life, young people still participate in this and it results in a lot of lives lost. On October 28, 2024 an incident occurred where two female teenagers, Kyrstel Romero, a 13 year old girl, was pronounced dead at the scene, and her friend, a 14 year old, was hospitalized and is still currently in critical condition. This happened right here in Queens. According to NYPost, “The teen and her friend were riding on top of a southbound 7 train when they fell between the cars and were run over at the 111th Street station around 11 p.m.” Sunday, cops said.” This is just one of the many incidents that occur. Last year 5 people died in subway surfing citywide. Now with 2024 almost coming to an end there have been six subway surfing deaths.

Teenagers know the risks of subway surfing being not only irresponsible but it also endangers the lives of anyone who does partake in this. Yet, they still do it. Why? Some say that these teens just have too much time on their hands and they are simply irresponsible. When teenagers do these “activities” they think it is joking around or just because they're subway surfing they think it makes them seem cooler but in reality they are just playing with their lives because while they do these activities they could be doing something smarter since they are so young and have so much ahead of them. Some news outlets also claim that teenagers are doing this for likes on social media. “During a press conference, Metropolitan Transportation Authority chair and CEO Janno Lieber said, “Listen, this is not like a video game. You don’t get another chance; you can’t just reboot. This is one chance – if you do something stupid, you’re going to lose your life. Please, parents, teachers, other caregivers, make sure kids understand this is not a game. They cannot take chances with their lives.”” (Live5News) When something goes wrong or somebody passes away which many have from doing this, it doesn't only affect the people they were with while participating in this “activity” but also their loved ones that have to go through the grief of losing a loved one and especially at a young age.

 What can the NYPD do to help prevent these tragic accidents? 

There should be increased patrols to enforce more enforcement. The NYPD should focus on the safety of the commuters of New York City by putting more attention on what is happening on train platforms instead of just train fares to prevent more than just train surfing because as we all know, there are many deaths that occur while using public transportation. The safety of the people of New York City should be the top priority. 

“New York City Mayor Eric Adams, New York City Police Department (NYPD) Interim Commissioner Thomas G. Donlon, and New York City Public Schools Chancellor Melissa Aviles-Ramos urged New Yorkers to call 911 if they see attempts at subway surfing and highlighted the administration's efforts to leverage technology to combat the dangerous trend on the heels of a recent tragic incident that claimed one young New Yorker's life and injured another. To help save lives, NYPD is utilizing 911 call data to deploy joint drone and field response teams of officers to areas experiencing the highest complaints of subway surfing.” (NYCGOV)

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