{"id":1023,"date":"2026-06-02T06:10:00","date_gmt":"2026-06-02T06:10:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=1023"},"modified":"2026-06-02T06:10:00","modified_gmt":"2026-06-02T06:10:00","slug":"nyc-subway-surfers-keep-dying-why-arent-copycats-deterred-parents-teens-psychologists-weigh-in","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=1023","title":{"rendered":"NYC subway surfers keep dying \u2014 why aren’t copycats deterred? Parents, teens, psychologists weigh in"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

Subway surfers are dying right and left, with videos of their gruesome deaths circulating on the internet.<\/p>\n

Read more Nancy Guthrie likely targeted by local worker who believed family was wealthy, veteran investigator says<\/a><\/p>\n

Yet, somehow, copycats are undeterred. In fact, some feel the deadly reminders add to the thrill for clout chasing kids desperate for TikTok stardom.<\/p>\n

\u201cSome surfers plainly do it because they just wanna go viral,\u201d Rey, a 17-year-old from the Bronx, told The Post.<\/p>\n

The latest senseless fatality happened May 22, when two teens fell from a J train crossing the Williamsburg Bridge in front of oncoming traffic \u2014 horrifically caught on camera by a motorist.<\/p>\n

A 14-year-old, Akhi Butler, was killed instantly, and an 18-year-old was transported to the hospital in critical condition in that incident.\u00a0Two girls, one just 13 years old, died subway surfing the same stretch in October last year.<\/p>\n

Riding outside of subway cars has increased 200% over two years, according to MTA data, largely fueled by social media videos. In 2024, seven people died while subway surfing. Five more people died in 2025.<\/p>\n

Clinical psychologist Holly Schiff pointed out locations like the Williamsburg Bridge are popular \u201cbecause they\u2019re visually dramatic.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe skyline views, the height, the openness, it kind of creates almost a cinematic feeling [that\u2019s] appealing for videos and social media content,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s also one of the longest points between two stations \u2014 between Delancey Street\/Essex Street station in Manhattan to Marcy Avenue in Brooklyn \u2014 which is overground and offers views of both Manhattan and Brooklyn.<\/p>\n

Still, the view is the same for those sitting inside the train car or walking the bridge\u2019s pedestrian crossing, both of which have no risk of electrocution from the third rail, being swiped from atop the subway car by a low-hanging bar or a person losing their footing and suffering horrific blunt force trauma.<\/p>\n

Isa Islam, who lost his eyesight in 2013 from subway surfing as a teen, said the appeal for him was the adrenaline rush.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy intentions to get an adrenaline rush nearly rushed me into my casket,\u201d he told The Post. \u201cIt is not worth it whatsoever, regardless of interest or the excitement. It\u2019s basically attempted murder on yourself.\u201d<\/p>\n

Other subway surfers have described the experience as \u201ca rush unlike anything else\u201d and \u201ca good feeling,\u201d also, bizarrely, claiming it is a \u201cform of art\u201d and \u201ca form of expression.\u201d<\/p>\n

One of the most shocking aspects of subway surfing is how young many participants are. The NYPD said they have apprehended more than 60 repeat offenders, some of whom were just 10 years old. Several were stopped just days after the most recent accident \u2014 showing just how undeterred some teens and tweens can be by tragedy.<\/p>\n

One 2025 victim was 12-year-old Zemfira Mukhtarov, whose body was discovered on top of a train last October.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe never heard about subway surfing. We have nothing to do with subway surfing,\u201d her mother, Nataliya Rudenko, told The Post, \u201cMy husband and I are hard-working people.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI have no idea what made her do this. How can I explain? No one knows,\u201d the 42-year-old mother said. \u201cShe was a very intelligent person. She was never looking for action.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rudenko would come to believe her daughter chose \u201cto go and surf the bridge\u201d because she \u201cwanted more action.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more Sen. Chuck Schumer thrown under the bus during House debate between Dan Goldman and Brad Lander<\/a><\/p>\n

It\u2019s frustrating to her grieving mother, who says she spent all the money she could muster to take her daughter on trips to educate her.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe went all over. I spent all this money so she could see the world,\u201d she said. \u201cI don\u2019t understand why she felt the need to get up there on top of a train, when she knows it\u2019s dangerous and people told her it\u2019s dangerous.\u201d<\/p>\n

She says she found a video her daughter posted to TikTok after her death where \u201cshe is on the top of the Williamsburg Bridge, [pretending to] hold our city on her hand.\u201d She was living a double life, posting videos of herself under the tracks and between cars with online friends, all to get internet popularity.<\/p>\n

As well as the Williamsburg Bridge, sources told The Post almost anywhere cars travel out in the open uncovered in the outer boroughs are susceptible to surfers. The 7 train running through Queens is another route where many kids subway surf, particularly around Queensboro Plaza station.<\/p>\n

Schiff says teens\u2019 brains \u201care not always deterred by danger\u201d and that seeing other people get hurt can create a \u201cparadoxical reaction\u201d and motivate them to prove that they can do better.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s often a mindset of \u2018I\u2019ll be more careful\u2019 [or] \u2018I know what I\u2019m doing,\u2019\u201d she said. \u201cThey think those people messed up somehow, and that they will do it better and be smarter.\u201d<\/p>\n

YouTuber Tommy G interviewed an anonymous subway surfer who said that \u201call the [public safety] announcements are literally fueling the fire.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIn reality, kids will see [or hear] that, they\u2019ll look up subway surfing on Instagram, and they\u2019ll literally hop on top of a train because they see people are discouraging it,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Matthew Bergman, lawyer at the Social Media Victims Law Center, says subway surfing is exactly the sort of thing that draws eyeballs online: \u201cYou get a greater dopamine hit from material that is discordant, disturbing, outrageous, than you do material that is, benign and affirming.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve seen videos on TikTok sort of romanticizing it,\u201d said a Manhattan high school senior who said that she\u2019s been barraged with point-of-view videos of local teen subway surfing.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s been videos on my For You page with pretty sunset views of the city on top of the subways, and the comments are all positive, talking about how vibey it is and how they want to do it too.\u201d<\/p>\n

An Instagram video of teens surfing with a sunset behind them attracted comments like \u201c\ud83d\udd25\ud83d\udd25,\u201d \u201csky looks amazing,\u201d and \u201cwhat a view.\u201d On another news video about the phenomenon, people commented, \u201cThat\u2019s a tradition in NY\u201d and \u201cstop spoiling people\u2019s fun.\u201d<\/p>\n

A spokesperson for Meta said that videos encouraging subway surfing violate their policies and are removed when the company becomes aware of them. \u201cWhile this is an industry-wide challenge, we will continue to work with MTA to address this issue,\u201d they added.\u00a0<\/p>\n

A TikTok spokesperson said that they\u2019ve blocked search terms related to subway surfing. While both Instagram and TikTok has blocked searches for the term \u201csubway surfing,\u201d TikTok has also blocked obvious variations like \u201csurfing subway,\u201d which Instagram has, so far, failed to do.<\/p>\n

\n<\/div>\n

The NYPD has tried everything from drones to social media surveillance to fight the trend. A spokesperson for New York City public schools told The Post they are also making public service announcements and presentations to families about subway surfing.<\/p>\n

In Rudenko\u2019s opinion, the solution is more surveillance and more security at the highest-risk spots.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have 472 subway stations, but they have to put security at [any] dangerous station where the kids can sneak onto cars,\u201d she demanded. \u201cPolice need to not sit in the office just doing nothing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more Anti-ICE protesters all the way from Portland arrested during violent Delaney Hall clashes, DHS says<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cThe city needs to protect our kids,\u201d she lamented. \u201cThat\u2019s our future.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

NYC subway surfers are dying right and left. Videos of their gruesome deaths are circulating on the internet. And yet, somehow, the copycats are not deterred. After a recent tragedy on the Williamsburg Bridge, The Post investigates why it keeps happening.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1022,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1023","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-metro"],"yoast_head":"\nNYC subway surfers keep dying \u2014 why aren't copycats deterred? 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