Subway safety is important to all New Yorkers. But it is a brute necessity—even basic human right—for working people in the City who have no other means of getting to work or family.

The April 12 mass shooting in Brooklyn’s 36th Street subway station, on top of nearly weekly stabbings, points to a major default of New York City leaders. With subway crime up 54% since last year and 39% in the last month, prompt and decisive action is called for.