“While local leaders seem intent on putting the needs of criminals first, we’re not waiting for the next Iryna,” Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said.
Federal transportation officials are calling on the MBTA to up security for transit workers and riders following a string of high-profile incidents on the T, including last week’s alleged assault on an older bus rider.
U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy threatened to revoke federal support for the MBTA and Chicago Transit Authority if both agencies do not take steps to enhance safety and curb crime. He invoked the high-profile killing of Iryna Zarutska, a young Ukrainian refugee who was fatally stabbed while riding a train in Charlotte, North Carolina, last month.
“While local leaders seem intent on putting the needs of criminals first, we’re not waiting for the next Iryna,” Duffy said in a statement. “Chicago and Boston are on notice to take actions that enhance safety and reduce the crime affecting their riders and transit workers — or risk federal support. This is about standing up for American families who deserve a safe and clean transportation system.”
The U.S. Department of Transportation pointed to a Sept. 8 incident that saw a 63-year-old woman violently shoved off an MBTA bus in Roxbury, as well as an Aug. 16 incident during which a bus rider allegedly removed his belt and struck someone in the face and neck near Harvard Square.
The agency also took issue with the bail systems used in Chicago and Boston, alleging both cities employ policies that allow “deranged criminals to repeatedly terrorize public spaces.”
In a letter to MBTA General Manager Phil Eng, Duffy ordered the T to submit a written report outlining recent security expenditures and the steps the agency has taken or will take to reduce crime, vagrancy, and fare evasion. The report is due to the Federal Transit Administration by Oct. 2.
Duffy further encouraged Eng to take advantage of available federal support for expenses tied to crime prevention and security, particularly at South Station. Deputy Secretary of Transportation Steven Bradbury last month suggested the federal government might be looking to take over South Station.
“People traveling on the MBTA system to reach their jobs, education, healthcare, and other critical services need to feel secure and travel in a safe environment free from crime and threatening encounters with drug addicts or the mentally ill, and workers who operate the system need to be assured of a safe operating environment to provide transportation services,” Duffy wrote in the letter.
“The transit riders and workers of Boston deserve nothing less,” he added, tacking on an ominous warning about “further consequences, up to and including redirecting or withholding funding.”
In a statement of his own, Eng said the MBTA shares a common goal with federal transit authorities looking to make public transportation safer. The T looks forward to providing the information Duffy requested, he added.
“As the MBTA and its Transit Police Department continue to work together with our federal, state, and local law enforcement partners, I want to assure the public that safety is at the heart of everything we do at the T,” Eng said.
He continued: “Investments in modernization, technology, accessibility, infrastructure, and more are showing real, tangible results as ridership returns to the system. We’re building back trust with the riding public because the T is a safe, dependable system riders can rely on.”
With Duffy’s demands, the MBTA and CTA join several other U.S. transit systems under the Trump administration’s microscope. Earlier this year, Duffy’s office sent similar letters to the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, the New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority, and the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority.
“Our transit systems are the circulatory system of our communities. That’s why our focus is on a safe, clean transit experience for everyone using public transportation,” said Federal Transit Administrator Marc Molinaro in a statement, adding, “We’re making transit safe again.”