Gov. Hochul responds to subway safety plan backlash

NEW YORK (PIX11) – Gov. Kathy Hochul’s five-point plan to make subways safer may not have had the intended effect, as riders say seeing armed National Guardsmen during their commute is jarring and too extreme.

She appeared on PIX11 Morning News to respond to the criticism, saying she stands by her decision to deploy the National Guard into subway stations.

“My No. 1 priority as the governor of the state of New York is to keep people safe,” Hochul said.

She said she respects what Mayor Eric Adams and the NYPD are doing for the city, but there is still anxiety among straphangers following a string of subway violence.

“Even though the statistics say that it is safer than it was before… now you’re dealing with the psychological toll that deters people from wanting to go on the subway,” Hochul said.

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She called the members of the National Guard, “our neighbors.”

“They’re there just as a deterrent to those who might think that they can get away with committing crimes,” Hochul said.

When pressed by PIX11 Morning News anchor Hazel Sanchez about deploying more NYPD officers into subways, Hochul said that the National Guard is already at her immediate disposal. To bring in more police officers would require going through funding and creating a budget, Hochul added.

“It takes a lot longer,” she said.

Hochul also discussed the city’s migrant crisis, bail reform and President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address.

Erin Pflaumer is a digital content producer from Long Island who has covered both local and national news since 2018. She joined PIX11 in 2023. See more of her work here.

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