The New York City subway will soon have artificial intelligence-powered gun-detecting scanners, Mayor Eric Adams said on Wednesday.
At a press conference held at Fulton Transit Center, the mayor stated that the technology will be installed “in a few locations” over the course of “the next few days.” Adams introduced the soon-to-be pilot program during an event in March where he showcased a free-standing Evolv firearm-detecting scanner.
Riders who carry metal items that resemble firearms are flagged by the scanners without having to stop or wait in line. According to Adams, investigators are also examining other businesses that offer comparable technologies.
“And they are looking at other companies as well. We are not locked into this company,” Adams said.
NYPD Transit Chief Michael Kemper was more cryptic regarding the weapons scanner test, merely stating that the NYPD has completed the 90-day wait period mandated by the city’s surveillance statute to begin testing the device. “Coming soon”, he stated.
The metal detector announcement coincides with the release of NYPD data indicating a decline in subway crime compared to pre-pandemic levels, which MTA Chair Janno Lieber partially attributes to Governor Kathy Hochul’s directive earlier this year to place hundreds of National Guard soldiers and state police officers in the transport system.
During the press conference, Lieber said that the system is not a “dystopian hellscape that our friends in the tabloid media sometimes portray” and that the state and city “are really making progress” on subway crime.
According to NYPD statistics, the number of major offenses registered in trains and stations since the beginning of the year has decreased by 11% when compared to the same period in 2019 and by about 8% when compared to 2023.
Adams said that 2024 saw a significant decline in subway robberies, bringing them to “the lowest point in recorded history.” “We are breaking the cycle of crime in our subway system” Hizzoner said. “If you take out the first two years of the pandemic, when no one was on the system, our system is now the safest in over 14 years.”
