NEW YORK — According to the New York Post, Amtrak police patrolling Penn Station are forced to rely on regular workers to protect rail bridges and tunnels because they’re so understaffed, employees said Tuesday.
The officers said they don’t have the manpower or the money to properly guard the vulnerable station – and rail lines that lead in and out of the city – despite the fact that they’re among the Big Apple’s most vulnerable points.
Around half a million people a day use Penn Station, yet sometimes there are just three officers manning the station, Amtrak police sources told The Post.
The cash crisis means cops do not work overtime, a source added.
“The overtime budget got so big after 9/11 that they had to cut it, so now no one is allowed overtime,” he said.
“It’s unsafe here. Two years ago we had 15 cops on duty; now we have three. Amtrak workers watch the tunnels and bridges for us because we don’t have anyone to send. It’s ridiculous.”
Yesterday, The Post reported how the absence of cops at the station was made worse by the fact that there are no tapes in the cameras on the tracks and no one stationed in the baggage room.
Despite the security problems, Amtrak says its hands are tied by the current cash crisis.