AI Surveillance software to detect fare evaders has been discreetly implemented in some New York City subway stations and is expected to be deployed in more locations by the end of this year, as revealed by public documents and government contracts.
The system, which hasn’t been officially acknowledged by name by the city or its transit authority, relies on third-party software that has been promoted as a means to collaborate with law enforcement to address fare evasion issues.
According to a report from the Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA), the system was operational in seven subway stations in May. The MTA plans to expand it to approximately two dozen more stations by the end of the year, with additional stations to follow. The same report disclosed that fare evasion cost the MTA $690 million in 2022.
Joana Flores, an MTA spokesperson, stated that the AI system does not notify the New York police about fare evaders, but she declined to comment on any potential changes to this policy. A police spokesperson also declined to comment.
Tim Minton, the MTA’s communications director, clarified that the system is primarily used as a tool to track fare evasion and assess the amount of money not collected by the subway system. The videos captured by the system are stored on the MTA’s servers for a limited period. It’s worth noting that New York Governor Kathy Hochul’s office previously announced the presence of over 10,000 surveillance cameras in the city’s transit systems.
Critics, including Albert Fox Cahn, director of the Surveillance Technology Oversight Project, a nonprofit legal group advocating for privacy rights, are concerned about the growing surveillance apparatus in New York City. He pointed out the increasing presence of automated license plate readers, data collection on Uber and Lyft users, and the NYPD’s access to tens of thousands of cameras in public spaces, making it challenging to maintain privacy in the city.
The software in question was developed by the Spanish company AWAAIT, as confirmed by Joana Flores. AWAAIT, however, declined to provide any comments.
The MTA’s assurances that the software would not aid law enforcement have not reassured privacy and civil rights advocates, who were already alarmed by previous efforts to combat fare evasion. In 2019, city police were directed to ticket fare evaders instead of arresting them, leading to concerns about the targeting of minority riders.
Molly Griffard, a staff attorney at the Legal Aid Society, expressed her disappointment with the city’s focus on enforcement mechanisms to collect fares from the poorest New Yorkers, rather than making public services more accessible to them.
An MTA contract for the AI system from July 2022, obtained by Albert Fox Cahn through a Freedom of Information Law request and shared with the news outlet, reveals that the system was initially tested in New York City in 2020 and was expanded to more stations in 2021. The exact number of stations using the software was redacted. The MTA’s spending records show that two purchases of “AWAAIT Video Analytics Fare Evasion Software” were made in 2021, totaling $35,335. Figures for 2022 were not available.
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Critics like Cahn argue that the technology’s use to track fare evasion reflects misplaced priorities and a disproportionate focus on criminalizing a relatively minor offense that harms no one, instead of seeking better solutions through policy and technology.
