Subway surfers are dying proper and left, with movies of their grotesque deaths circulating on the web.
But, someway, copycats are undeterred. In actual fact, some really feel the lethal reminders add to the fun for clout chasing children determined for TikTok stardom.
“Some surfers plainly do it as a result of they only wanna go viral,” Rey, a 17-year-old from the Bronx, advised The Put up.
The most recent mindless fatality occurred Could 22, when two teenagers fell from a J prepare crossing the Williamsburg Bridge in entrance of oncoming site visitors — horrifically caught on digital camera by a motorist.
A 14-year-old, Akhi Butler, was killed immediately and an 18-year-old was transported to the hospital in important situation in that incident. Two women, one simply 13-years-old, died subway browsing the identical stretch in October final 12 months.
Driving exterior of subway vehicles has elevated 200% over two years, in response to MTA knowledge, largely fueled by social media movies. In 2024, seven individuals died whereas subway browsing. 5 extra whole died in 2025.
Scientific psychologist Holly Schiff identified areas just like the Williamsburg Bridge are in style “as a result of they’re visually dramatic.”
“The skyline views, the peak, the openness, it sort of creates nearly a cinematic feeling [that’s] interesting for movies and social media content material,” she stated.
It’s additionally one of many longest factors between two stations — between Delancey Avenue/Essex Avenue station in Manhattan to Marcy Avenue in Brooklyn — which is overground and provides views of each Manhattan and Brooklyn.
Nonetheless, the view is identical for these sitting contained in the prepare automotive or strolling the bridge’s pedestrian crossing, each of which haven’t any threat of electrocution from the third rail, being swiped from atop the subway automotive by a low hanging bar or an individual shedding their footing and struggling horrific blunt drive trauma.
Isa Islam, who misplaced his eyesight in 2013 from subway browsing as a teen, stated the attraction for him was the adrenaline rush.
“My intentions to get an adrenaline rush practically rushed me into my casket,” he advised The Put up. “It’s not value it by any means, no matter curiosity or the joy. It’s mainly tried homicide on your self.”
Different subway surfers have described the expertise as “a rush in contrast to the rest” and “a very good feeling,” additionally, bizarrely, claiming it’s a “type of artwork” and “a type of expression.”
One of the vital surprising points of subway browsing is how younger many individuals are. The NYPD stated they’ve apprehended greater than 60 repeat offenders, a few of whom had been simply 10 years previous. A number of had been stopped simply days after the latest accident — displaying simply how undeterred some teenagers and tweens could be by tragedy.
One 2025 sufferer was 12-year-old Zemfira Mukhtarov, whose physique was found on high of a prepare final October.
“We by no means heard about subway browsing. We now have nothing to do with subway browsing,” her mom, Nataliya Rudenko, advised The Put up, “My husband and I are hard-working individuals.”
“I do not know what made her do that. How can I clarify? Nobody is aware of,” the 42-year-old mom stated. “She was a really clever particular person. She was by no means in search of motion.”
Rudenko would come to imagine her daughter selected “to go and surf the bridge” as a result of she “wished extra motion,”
It’s irritating to her grieving mom, who says she spent all the cash she may muster to take her daughter on journeys to teach her.
“She went throughout. I spent all this cash so she may see the world,” she stated. “I don’t perceive why she felt the necessity to stand up there on high of a prepare, when she is aware of it’s harmful and other people advised her it’s harmful.”
She says she discovered a video her daughter posted to TikTok after her demise the place “she is on the highest of the Williamsburg Bridge, [pretending to] maintain our metropolis on her hand.” She was residing a double life, posting movies of herself underneath the tracks and between vehicles with on-line buddies, all to get web reputation.
In addition to the Williamsburg Bridge, sources advised The Put up nearly wherever vehicles journey out within the open uncovered within the outer boroughs are prone to surfers. The 7 prepare operating by Queens is one other route the place many children subway surf, significantly round Queensboro Plaza station.
Schiff says teenagers’ brains “should not all the time deterred by hazard” and that seeing different individuals get damage can create a “paradoxical response” and inspire them to show that they will do higher.
“There’s usually a mindset of ‘I’ll be extra cautious’ [or] ‘I do know what I’m doing,’” she stated. “They assume these individuals tousled someway, and that they may do it higher and be smarter.”
YouTuber Tommy G interviewed an nameless subway surfer who stated that “all of the [public safety] bulletins are actually fueling the hearth.”
“In actuality, children will see [or hear] that, they’ll search for subway browsing on Instagram, and so they’ll actually hop on high of a prepare as a result of they see individuals are discouraging it,” he stated.
Matthew Bergman, lawyer on the Social Media Victims Legislation Heart, says subway browsing is strictly the form of factor that pulls eyeballs on-line: “You get a better dopamine hit from materials that’s discordant, disturbing, outrageous, than you do materials that’s, benign and affirming.”
“I’ve seen movies on TikTok form of romanticizing it,” stated a Manhattan highschool senior who stated that she’s been barraged with point-of-view movies of native teen subway browsing.
“There’s been movies on my For You web page with fairly sundown views of town on high of the subways, and the feedback are all optimistic, speaking about how vibey it’s and the way they need to do it too.”
An Instagram video of teenagers browsing with a sundown behind them attracted feedback like “🔥🔥,” “sky appears wonderful,” and “what a view.” On one other information video concerning the phenomenon, individuals commented, “That’s a practice in NY” and “cease spoiling individuals’s enjoyable.”
A spokesperson for Meta stated that movies encouraging subway browsing violate their insurance policies and are eliminated when the corporate turns into conscious of them. “Whereas that is an industry-wide problem, we are going to proceed to work with MTA to handle this difficulty,” they added.
A TikTok spokesperson stated that they’ve blocked search phrases associated to subway browsing. Whereas each Instagram and TikTok has blocked searches for the time period “subway browsing,” TikTok has additionally blocked apparent variations like “browsing subway,” which Instagram has, to date, did not do.
The NYPD has tried every little thing from drones to social media surveillance to battle the pattern. A spokesperson for New York Metropolis public colleges advised The Put up they’re additionally making public service bulletins and displays to households about subway browsing.
In Rudenko’s opinion, the answer is extra surveillance and extra safety on the highest-risk spots.
“We now have 472 subway stations, however they should put safety at [any] harmful station the place the youngsters can sneak onto vehicles,” she demanded. “Police have to not sit within the workplace simply doing nothing.”
“Town wants to guard our youngsters,” she lamented. “That’s our future.”
