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A leading Manhattan congressman who has taken the subway for years and the transportation secretary, who frequently criticizes the system, clashed over how dangerous it is at a House hearing in Washington.
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Nadler and Duffy in Tense Exchange Over N.Y.C. Subway Safety
Representative Jerrold Nadler of New York, a member of the House transportation committee, and Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy argued over subway safety statistics during a hearing on Wednesday.
“Secretary Duffy, why do you continue to lie about New York City?” “You’re lying. Don’t call me a liar here.” “I’m calling you a liar because you’ve lied, continually.” “This is the one area where you have to pay $9 every single day to access Manhattan. That doesn’t exist anywhere else.” “Every single program where you have tolls. Highways is under the same program.” “Why don’t we fight for the people who can’t afford to pay that pricing? Why shouldn’t everyone have access to the city? And if you’re going to force people into a subway, make sure it’s safe. Very simple.” “It is safe. I gave you the statistics.” “I gave you the stats.” “Well, your statistics are wrong.” “Are you aware that major crime in the transit system, including assaults, is down 3 percent since last year and down 8 percent since 2019?” “Well, I’d say — ” “That’s a yes or no question.” “No, that’s wrong. The assaults that we’ve seen are up 60 percent with M.T.A. in the system since 2019.” “Why do you continue to ignore this and lie about this in your public comments?” “My question: Why do you continue to lie about people being lit on fire in subways or pushed in front of trains? You should be fighting to make sure your subways are safe.”
July 17, 2025Updated 8:15 a.m. ET
How safe is the New York City subway?
A Manhattan congressman, who has taken the train for years, and the U.S. secretary of transportation, who rode the subway a few stops in April, drew two starkly different conclusions at a tense public meeting on Wednesday. Each man called the other a liar.
The subway is, in fact, much safer than its critics have argued, according to police figures. But detractors have latched onto a recent surge in assaults and the shocking details of a handful of high-profile crimes to paint the subway as lawless and in need of intervention.
Wednesday’s heated exchange in Washington, part of an hourslong oversight hearing, was the latest skirmish between New York officials and the Trump administration over the state of the city’s transit system.
Representative Jerrold Nadler, a Democrat and a senior member of the House transportation committee, said that Sean Duffy, the head of the Transportation Department, had distorted statistics to make the subway seem more dangerous than it is.
Major crime in the subway — which includes murder, rape, assault and other felonies — was down 3 percent through June, compared with the same period last year. Since the first half of 2019, before the pandemic, major crime was down 8 percent.
In pointed questioning, Mr. Nadler asked if Mr. Duffy was aware of the trend.
“No, that’s wrong,” Mr. Duffy said, before adding that assaults, one of the most worrisome categories of crime in the subway, had risen sharply.
