Grabbing a bagel before hopping on the 1 train may soon be illegal if a Harlem state senator has his way.
State Senator Bill Perkins is proposing a ban on food on the subways to battle rat problems underground—though some locals remain skeptical that such a ban would work.
In a study conducted by Perkins between September and October of more than 5000 residents in upper Manhattan—including Morningside Heights and West Harlem—87 percent of respondents spotted rats daily or weekly and 86 percent reported seeing rats on the tracks or platforms.
“The customers are saying the place could be cleaner, and the customers are saying that the conditions are contributing to the rat problem,” Perkins said. “And the customer’s always right.”
Perkins said his office is conducting further research and preparing to introduce the legislation in January, which would ban all food in subway stations and cars.
“Rats are in the subway because they follow the food,” said Carla Toro, a research scientist with the NYC Department of Health. “If we reduce the quantity of litter, garbage, and crumbs, that’s definitely step one.”
But rats need only one ounce of food a day to live, Toro added, so the ban would need to be strictly enforced.
At the newly renovated 96th Street 1 train station, Aashna Kishore said she would support a food ban but added, “It would be a very tough thing to impose on New Yorkers—they’re always on the move.”
The idea has some business owners concerned as well.
Subway food vendor Monli Chowdhury, whose newsstand is set up on the 110th Street southbound platform, said prohibiting food would only upset straphangers.
“I don’t see any rats in this station,” he said. “People come here all the time for food, and they don’t complain.” Although he could continue to operate his newsstand by selling only periodicals and beverages, he said that the state should be focusing on other problems.
“I have a business here, and I need to protect that,” he said.
Perkins said that his office is considering alternatives to help vendors make up for the loss of food revenue. “We don’t want to do anything that cripples their income, and while we’re not sure that stopping food vending would automatically cripple the income, it can be replaced,” he said.
In response to Perkins, MTA officials said that the city has several measures in place to combat rodent problems.
Transit workers routinely power-wash station platforms and track areas, MTA spokesperson Kevin Ortiz said, adding that the MTA uses “rodent-resistant trash receptacles” and employs a team of exterminators. “We periodically launch public service campaigns asking customers not to eat in subways or on buses,” Ortiz said.
But Perkins said his survey indicates New Yorkers think the MTA has not done enough. A respondent quoted in Perkins’ survey wrote, “I saw a rat climb up an unsuspecting woman’s leg at the 125th Street station. Rats are constantly on the platform there.”
On the 1 line, respondents reported seeing the most rats at the 96th Street, 125th Street and 145th Street stations, though rats are a city-wide issue. A June study, conducted by the city Board of Health, found that half the subway lines in lower Manhattan exhibited signs of mild or severe infestation.
“I think if a food ban is a clear way to keep rat population down, that’s good,” said Mel Lehman, an Upper West Side resident. “There’s a public pride in our city not to have trash.”
Still, some are not ready to make the change.
“I eat on the subway all the time, so I would be pretty sad,” commuter Natasha Marsh said at 96th Street. “Rats are kind of inevitable.”
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