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Stark Symbol of Pandemic in N.Y.: Homeless People Huddled on the Subway Stark Symbol of Pandemic in N.Y.: Homeless People Huddled on the Subway
(8 days later)
Every No. 2 train that lumbered into the last stop in the Bronx late Wednesday night had, at most, a couple of dozen passengers. And when the doors swooshed open, half of them had no intention of getting off.Every No. 2 train that lumbered into the last stop in the Bronx late Wednesday night had, at most, a couple of dozen passengers. And when the doors swooshed open, half of them had no intention of getting off.
Just after 10:30 p.m., a female transit worker leaned in close to a man who was slumped in a seat against a railing. He was wearing a large hooded jacket and had a dark scarf wrapped around his mouth.Just after 10:30 p.m., a female transit worker leaned in close to a man who was slumped in a seat against a railing. He was wearing a large hooded jacket and had a dark scarf wrapped around his mouth.
“Wake up!” the woman shouted.“Wake up!” the woman shouted.
The man didn’t flinch. It took another worker rapping the railing with a metal tool to get him to stand up.The man didn’t flinch. It took another worker rapping the railing with a metal tool to get him to stand up.
The man, who gave his name only as Victor C., said in an interview on the platform that staying on the train was a point of pride: “People not wanting to burden their family, not wanting to count on the government.”The man, who gave his name only as Victor C., said in an interview on the platform that staying on the train was a point of pride: “People not wanting to burden their family, not wanting to count on the government.”
“What works for you may not work for me,” he added.“What works for you may not work for me,” he added.
Generations of homeless people have used New York City’s subway as protection against the elements and a place to unsoundly sleep.Generations of homeless people have used New York City’s subway as protection against the elements and a place to unsoundly sleep.
But with little access to showers or medical care, they have become a health hazard during the coronavirus pandemic. And with ridership down 92 percent, images of them splayed across otherwise empty cars have become searing symbols of the city’s precarious condition.But with little access to showers or medical care, they have become a health hazard during the coronavirus pandemic. And with ridership down 92 percent, images of them splayed across otherwise empty cars have become searing symbols of the city’s precarious condition.
So on Thursday, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo, Mayor Bill de Blasio and transit officials reached a consensus: Putting the city on track to eventual reopening, and restoring public confidence in public transportation, required an extraordinary step.So on Thursday, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo, Mayor Bill de Blasio and transit officials reached a consensus: Putting the city on track to eventual reopening, and restoring public confidence in public transportation, required an extraordinary step.
Beginning on Wednesday, a subway system famous for never shutting down will close each night during the pandemic from 1 a.m. to 5 a.m., allowing time for intensive cleaning and disinfecting while also eliminating the overnight refuge that some homeless people depend on.Beginning on Wednesday, a subway system famous for never shutting down will close each night during the pandemic from 1 a.m. to 5 a.m., allowing time for intensive cleaning and disinfecting while also eliminating the overnight refuge that some homeless people depend on.
Mr. Cuomo and Mr. de Blasio said they would work to help them get shelter.Mr. Cuomo and Mr. de Blasio said they would work to help them get shelter.
“It’s an unacceptable reality and this new plan will disrupt that unacceptable reality and allow us to actually get help to people more effectively,” Mr. de Blasio said.“It’s an unacceptable reality and this new plan will disrupt that unacceptable reality and allow us to actually get help to people more effectively,” Mr. de Blasio said.
Although no one keeps an official daily count, transit workers and homeless New Yorkers said they believed more homeless people were on the subway these days, because other public gathering spots had closed and because they feared the very places where officials want them to go.Although no one keeps an official daily count, transit workers and homeless New Yorkers said they believed more homeless people were on the subway these days, because other public gathering spots had closed and because they feared the very places where officials want them to go.
In the dormitory-style shelters where single adults sleep just a few arms’ lengths from one another, there seems to be no escape from the virus. More than 60 homeless people have died in the outbreak; nearly three out of every four were single adults who had stayed in shelters where multiple people shared rooms and bathrooms.In the dormitory-style shelters where single adults sleep just a few arms’ lengths from one another, there seems to be no escape from the virus. More than 60 homeless people have died in the outbreak; nearly three out of every four were single adults who had stayed in shelters where multiple people shared rooms and bathrooms.
At the same time, almost 100 Metropolitan Transportation Authority employees have died. Many were bus drivers and train operators, all working in confined spaces where multiple people sneeze and cough and grip the same metal poles.At the same time, almost 100 Metropolitan Transportation Authority employees have died. Many were bus drivers and train operators, all working in confined spaces where multiple people sneeze and cough and grip the same metal poles.
No passengers have stirred more public fear than those who, often because of mental illness, are unable to keep themselves clean.No passengers have stirred more public fear than those who, often because of mental illness, are unable to keep themselves clean.
Without the shutdown, cleanup crews now have about 10 to 15 minutes to scrub down cars before a train turns around, said David Duarte, a cleaner based at the Stillwell Avenue Station in Coney Island, Brooklyn, one of the largest elevated terminals in the world.Without the shutdown, cleanup crews now have about 10 to 15 minutes to scrub down cars before a train turns around, said David Duarte, a cleaner based at the Stillwell Avenue Station in Coney Island, Brooklyn, one of the largest elevated terminals in the world.
Mr. Duarte said that he and four co-workers now put on hazmat suits, masks and gloves before starting work.Mr. Duarte said that he and four co-workers now put on hazmat suits, masks and gloves before starting work.
“There can be feces, urine, a lot of trash,” he said. “The more homeless are in there, the harder it is to clean the train.”“There can be feces, urine, a lot of trash,” he said. “The more homeless are in there, the harder it is to clean the train.”
The cleaner at the last stop on the No. 2 line on Wednesday night said that homeless people had cursed her, tried to fight her and spit at her when she asked them to leave the train. Now, she works quickly, paying attention to any symptoms people who refuse to leave are showing.The cleaner at the last stop on the No. 2 line on Wednesday night said that homeless people had cursed her, tried to fight her and spit at her when she asked them to leave the train. Now, she works quickly, paying attention to any symptoms people who refuse to leave are showing.
“I try to keep my mask on and the doors open,” said the woman, who declined to give her name because she was not authorized to speak to a reporter. “And if I hear anybody cough I just run out.”“I try to keep my mask on and the doors open,” said the woman, who declined to give her name because she was not authorized to speak to a reporter. “And if I hear anybody cough I just run out.”
Sarah Feinberg, the interim president of New York City Transit, said in a statement that “the subway system should not be used as a substitute for shelter.”Sarah Feinberg, the interim president of New York City Transit, said in a statement that “the subway system should not be used as a substitute for shelter.”
“It’s not good for our customers, it’s not good for our workers, and it’s not good for homeless New Yorkers who deserve much, much better care,” she said.“It’s not good for our customers, it’s not good for our workers, and it’s not good for homeless New Yorkers who deserve much, much better care,” she said.
For decades, the concentration of homeless people on New York’s streets and trains has been viewed as an indicator of the health of the city itself. Despite growing numbers of homeless people in recent years, a boom in tax revenue has allowed the mayor to meet a legal requirement to place most of them in shelters, apartments and, in recent weeks, thousands of hotel rooms.For decades, the concentration of homeless people on New York’s streets and trains has been viewed as an indicator of the health of the city itself. Despite growing numbers of homeless people in recent years, a boom in tax revenue has allowed the mayor to meet a legal requirement to place most of them in shelters, apartments and, in recent weeks, thousands of hotel rooms.
But with the M.T.A. experiencing deep declines in ridership, the presence of homeless people in the absence of almost all other passengers has made subway cars appear to be nothing so much as rolling shelters.But with the M.T.A. experiencing deep declines in ridership, the presence of homeless people in the absence of almost all other passengers has made subway cars appear to be nothing so much as rolling shelters.
On Tuesday, Mr. Cuomo called images of unkempt homeless people on trains “disgusting.” The remark struck some people as insensitive, but it reflected a broader worry that the authority will have a hard time persuading the millions of daily riders who used the system before the pandemic to trust public transportation again.On Tuesday, Mr. Cuomo called images of unkempt homeless people on trains “disgusting.” The remark struck some people as insensitive, but it reflected a broader worry that the authority will have a hard time persuading the millions of daily riders who used the system before the pandemic to trust public transportation again.
Updated July 27, 2020 Updated August 3, 2020
The city and the authority have already been moving more aggressively to remove homeless people from the subway, trying to coax them into shelters and also checking whether they have virus symptoms and might need hospitalization. As is often the case with such outreach efforts, what it looks like depends on which side of the subway doors you are on.The city and the authority have already been moving more aggressively to remove homeless people from the subway, trying to coax them into shelters and also checking whether they have virus symptoms and might need hospitalization. As is often the case with such outreach efforts, what it looks like depends on which side of the subway doors you are on.
To officials, the nightly descent of police officers, transit employees and homeless services workers into the system is a concerted attempt to restore order and get the most down-and-out the help they desperately need. To homeless people and their advocates, it is an intimidating show of force that tramples individual rights and merely sweeps a problem outside without addressing its root causes.To officials, the nightly descent of police officers, transit employees and homeless services workers into the system is a concerted attempt to restore order and get the most down-and-out the help they desperately need. To homeless people and their advocates, it is an intimidating show of force that tramples individual rights and merely sweeps a problem outside without addressing its root causes.
“At the end of the day, we understand this is a very dangerous situation people are going through,” said Donte Johnson, 47, who has lived on the A and D trains for about three years. “But before this, homeless people were already going through a dangerous situation.”“At the end of the day, we understand this is a very dangerous situation people are going through,” said Donte Johnson, 47, who has lived on the A and D trains for about three years. “But before this, homeless people were already going through a dangerous situation.”
A woman who rode into the Wakefield station on Wednesday, surrounded by trash bags that took up an entire end bench and all the floor space around it, said she resented the way authority officials and the police had treated her. She said they had thrown out some of her bags. And the shelters the city was trying to get her into, she said, were hazardous.A woman who rode into the Wakefield station on Wednesday, surrounded by trash bags that took up an entire end bench and all the floor space around it, said she resented the way authority officials and the police had treated her. She said they had thrown out some of her bags. And the shelters the city was trying to get her into, she said, were hazardous.
“The shelters are full of the virus,” she said, a surgical mask flapping from one ear beneath a black ball cap decorated with colorful ribbons and a sleigh bell. The rest of her clothes were ragged.“The shelters are full of the virus,” she said, a surgical mask flapping from one ear beneath a black ball cap decorated with colorful ribbons and a sleigh bell. The rest of her clothes were ragged.
The woman, who declined to give her name and identified herself only as over 65, said her trick for keeping people away from her is to act sick, or erratic. She had taken to yelling at anyone she rode the train with — some tended to be homeless as well — who was not wearing a mask. It had kept her physically distanced, she said.The woman, who declined to give her name and identified herself only as over 65, said her trick for keeping people away from her is to act sick, or erratic. She had taken to yelling at anyone she rode the train with — some tended to be homeless as well — who was not wearing a mask. It had kept her physically distanced, she said.
All things considered, she said, she felt better protected on the subway than just about anywhere else.All things considered, she said, she felt better protected on the subway than just about anywhere else.
“It’s safer,” she said. “There’s nobody on the train.”“It’s safer,” she said. “There’s nobody on the train.”
The city is trying to mitigate the health risk at shelters by moving thousands of people into hotel rooms that are empty because of a lack of tourists. Urban Justice Center, an advocacy group, said the city had not opened enough rooms; the group has raised about $60,000 for more.The city is trying to mitigate the health risk at shelters by moving thousands of people into hotel rooms that are empty because of a lack of tourists. Urban Justice Center, an advocacy group, said the city had not opened enough rooms; the group has raised about $60,000 for more.
Gina, a 53-year-old woman who did not want to use her last name to protect her identity, moved into a hotel room about two weeks ago. The subway had been her home for more than a year. To wash up, she would buy a cup of coffee or soda from a shop where she could use the bathroom. She kept her belongings in a storage unit.Gina, a 53-year-old woman who did not want to use her last name to protect her identity, moved into a hotel room about two weeks ago. The subway had been her home for more than a year. To wash up, she would buy a cup of coffee or soda from a shop where she could use the bathroom. She kept her belongings in a storage unit.
Now, she doesn’t want to ride the subway because of the health risk. Nor does she want to go into a shelter system where people tend to be close together and where, she said, she was once sexually assaulted.Now, she doesn’t want to ride the subway because of the health risk. Nor does she want to go into a shelter system where people tend to be close together and where, she said, she was once sexually assaulted.
“There are a lot of people who are like me,” said Gina, who lost her job working at a call center in March. “Why would they send you to a shelter where people have Covid? I won’t do it. I’m still afraid.”“There are a lot of people who are like me,” said Gina, who lost her job working at a call center in March. “Why would they send you to a shelter where people have Covid? I won’t do it. I’m still afraid.”
Victor C., the man hustled off the No. 2 train on Wednesday, said he began living on the subway about five years ago after his mother died. He said he worked in construction, had “no issues” and refused to enter the shelter system. “You don’t get the help you need,” he said.Victor C., the man hustled off the No. 2 train on Wednesday, said he began living on the subway about five years ago after his mother died. He said he worked in construction, had “no issues” and refused to enter the shelter system. “You don’t get the help you need,” he said.
And he had no intention of going to a shelter now. After getting kicked off the train, he waited for 20 minutes, and then shuffled onto a train headed south toward Manhattan.And he had no intention of going to a shelter now. After getting kicked off the train, he waited for 20 minutes, and then shuffled onto a train headed south toward Manhattan.
Christina Goldbaum contributed reporting.Christina Goldbaum contributed reporting.