It is illegal to go outside the carriage, but the Police Department does not track arrests related to riding outside the carriage. Mr. Davey said authorities were trying to spread the message about the dangers of subway surfing, while the Police Department said in a statement that the increased police presence at stations and on the platform – Governor Kathy Hochul and Mr. Adams flooded the system with more officers in the fall – which could “prevent violations of transit rules and regulations including traveling on the outside of the carriages.”
In interviews with five teenage boys who had ridden the subway, The Times learned that the participants, usually teenage boys, according to interviews and social media videos, often entered the train like like most passengers. As the train left the station, surfers skated between the cars and scrambled to the top. The boys say that they often choose the elevated tram lines, where they can feel the wind and see the city above ground.
Jon, a 15-year-old boy from Queens who asked to be identified only by name out of fear of possible legal consequences, said he was caught by police surfing in the back of the train. train number 5 in early 2022, but got out with a warning.
Thrillers riding on subway cars are hardly new; a 1991 article in The Times noted an anecdotal increase at that time. But in an age where social media is status-centric, teens are encouraged to post bolder and more eye-catching content, experts say, and videos of young people surfing the subway have become increasingly popular. viral on TikTok. “To get views, likes, and get people to engage with your posts, you have to do something crazier,” said Kim Gorgens, a professor of psychology at the University of Denver. “And to be popular with your friends, you have to do something bigger and crazier. We have pushed each other into a really dangerous place.”
After The Times asked TikTok to comment on its policies regarding surfing videos and content that may encourage young people to do dangerous things, several videos of teenagers surfing in New York have disappeared. off this platform.
“The safety and health of users is a top priority at TikTok. As we make clear in Community guideWe do not allow content that promotes, promotes or glorifies dangerous challenges that could lead to injury,” a TikTok spokesperson said in a statement.
The surf videos resemble the real-life version of the mobile game Subway Surfers, in which the user plays the role of a teenager who has just been caught doing graffiti and has to run on the tracks, jump on a train to escape. from the inspector and his dog. Dr. Megan Moreno, interim dean of pediatrics and principal investigator of the Adolescent Health and Social Media Research Group at the University of Wisconsin, said in an increasingly digital world, Blurring the line between screen and reality can make dangerous behavior normal.
