Big Brother Comes to Astoria

http://www.amny.com/news/local/transportation/subway/am-cameras0411,0,2351642.story

Anti-terror cams come to Queen
By Matthew Grant
Special to amNewYork
April 11, 2007

Big Brother will soon be watching, and Queens lawmakers say it's for your own good.Thirty-six high-tech cameras will be installed at three subway stops in Astoria as part as of an anti-terror security plan."What began as an anti-terror initiative in response to both 9/11 and the bombings in London has now proven to be a very successful tool to combat everyday crime," State Assemb. Michael Gianaris (D-Queens) said Tuesday.
The cameras, paid for with $1.7 million in state and federal funds, will be installed at the Broadway, 30th Avenue and Astoria Boulevard stops along the N/W line. Each station will be outfitted with 12 cameras, most of them positioned at the entrances and exits.Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-Queens/Brooklyn), who worked with Gianaris to secure funding for the cameras, said a 2003 al-Qaida plot to release poisonous gas in the subways shows how vulnerable the system is.
But Gene Russianoff, staff attorney for the Straphangers Campaign, said he isn't convinced adding a few dozen cameras will improve safety. But, he added, "It's like chicken soup, it can't hurt."Besides, he added, "A lot of riders find solace in seeing these cameras and it makes them feel more secure.
"There are 50 subway stations in the city that have surveillance cameras an MTA spokesman said.However, a spokeswoman for Gianaris said that these will be among the first in Queens. She said the cameras will be similar to those installed in convenience stores, and will be able to store 45 days worth of information.They should be operational by the end of the summer, she said.
A year ago Gianaris announced funding for cameras at the Ditmars Boulevard station; they have been installed and should be operational in two months.Gianaris also hopes to secure money to install cameras at the Steinway Street station along the R line.
"We are now in a period of record-breaking train usage in the city," Gianaris said. "The more we can make people feel safe in getting on those trains the better it'll be for them and for all of New York."Weiner insists, however, that the security cameras will not be used as a substitute for police vigilance, but more as a tool in deterring crime."You can't have too many eyes keeping us safe when it comes to the subways," Weiner said.