(AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki, File) NEW YORK (AP) — Cleaning wipes are harder to find on store shelves, and businesses are reassuring customers with stepped up sanitation measures. Posted at 5:20 PM, May 02, 2020 . When service resumes, they say, the system should be shut down daily from midnight to 5 a.m. for deep cleaning, workers should get better PPE, and all … MORE: Gov. ", 24/7 coverage of breaking news and live events. The New York City subway system has seen a 90 percent decline in ridership since the Covid-19 pandemic shut down the city. The Metropolitan Transportation Authority shut down the New York City subway system in the morning hours of May 6 for cleaning amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Subway Shutdown: New York Closes System for First Time in 115 Years On Wednesday morning, the system, a 24-hour mainstay, closed for overnight disinfection. He first warned of the historic change last week, explaining that the subway system would shut down from 1 a.m. to 5 a.m. each night beginning on May 6. Gov. A homeless man receives assistance at the Coney Island-Stillwell Avenue subway station on the second night the transit system was shut down overnight for cleaning. Citing government surveys, de Blasio said 3,500 to 4,000 homeless people live on New York City streets or within the subway system on any given night, but added that the number of people who accepted housing offered by outreach workers during Wednesday morning's cleaning was "remarkable.". Beginning May 6, at 1 a.m., the subway will shut down each day between 1 a.m. and 5 a.m., so subway cars can be disinfected. Cuomo has just announced that subway service will be shut down from 1 to 5 a.m. every day so that the system can be completely disinfected every 24 hours. In addition to shuttle buses, the MTA paid for 250 for-hire vehicle trips for essential workers through its Essential Connector program, said Foye, adding, "As we predicted, most of the riders, first responders and essential workers in this 1 a.m. to 5 a.m. period were served by the robust bus service that was added. NYC Subway Shut Down For Cleaning. A team of about 700 cleaners ensured nearly every train car was cleaned at least once, and some likely more than once, MTA officials said. Andrew Cuomo says New York City is shutting down its subway system each day from 1 a.m. to 5 a.m. to increase cleaning … NEW YORK -- New York City's subway system went silent in the early morning hours of Wednesday, as part of a plan for the normally round-the-clock system to shut down for … It was the sounds of silence in New York City’s subway system, as the normally round-the-clock system shut down for train cleaning… Workers clean Grand Central station as the New York City subway system, the largest public transportation system in the nation is set for nightly cleaning due to the continued spread of the coronavirus on May 5, 2020 in New York. Associated Press. In Muir interview, Trump walks back talk of vaccine by year's end, touts progress on therapeutics, Minorities have higher chances for 'bad outcomes' as country reopens: Former acting CDC director, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced on Thursday that from 1 a.m. to 5 a.m. each night beginning May 6, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority will shut down the subway … And while some users did jump in and confirm that it was actually the 24/7 subway system itself that was being shut down for the first time in 115 years, many were left wondering why the trains still seem pretty gross in appearance if they're being cleaned on a … They’ll be used for cleaning subway station equipment like MetroCard machines, turnstiles, and handrails. No arrests or summonses were issued, officials said. ", NYPD Chief Terry Monahan added: "We weren't sure what we would get -- 252 was a reasonable number compared to what people thought were living in stations. The governor says this is the first time something like this has ever been done. But Giselle Routhier, policy director of the nonprofit group Coalition for the Homeless, criticized the operation for forcing homeless people, who use the subways as a refuge, into the streets. The first deliberate shutdown of the New York City subway system in 115 years was deemed "successful" by transit officials on Wednesday, after a small army of cleaners disinfected trains, and police officers, social workers and nurses helped remove many of the homeless population that had been sheltering underground during the pandemic. The latest news and biggest developments to keep you informed about the deadly pandemic. New York City normally has the country's busiest public transit system, with a weekday ridership of more than 5 million. For the first time ever, New York City's subways shut down overnight for a deep cleaning (Source: QuickTake) May 6th, 2020, 8:08 PM GMT+0000. The New York Police Department has assigned more than 1,000 officers to secure many of the system's 472 stations, as fewer than 200 can be physically locked up. The first deliberate shutdown of the New York City subway system in 115 years was deemed "successful" by transit officials on Wednesday, after a small army of cleaners disinfected trains, and police officers, social workers and nurses helped remove many of the homeless population that had been sheltering underground during the pandemic. "I think it's fair to say the first closing of the subway in 115 years was successful," Metropolitan Transportation Authority Chairman Pat Foye said Wednesday in an interview with WCBS radio. People wear masks and maintain social distance to help stop the spread of new coronavirus, while waiting in line to enter a store on 5th Avenue in Sunset Park, a Brooklyn neighborhood in New York. NEW YORK (AP) – New York City’s subway system went silent in the early morning hours of Wednesday, as part of a plan for the normally round-the-clock system to shut down for train cleaning. (WABC) -- Every night, with the subway shut down for cleaning during the coronavirus pandemic, hundreds of homeless New Yorkers are herded out of the subways. Service officially shut down between 1 and 5 a.m. at all 472 stations in order to disinfect cars and platforms and to prevent the homeless from riding overnight. If we can get more and more [individuals] into services, that number can get even lower.". The daily cleaning is scheduled to continue at those hours for the duration of the pandemic, which has killed nearly 14,000 people in New York City and infected more than 173,000. New York City's subway system shut down in the early hours of Wednesday morning for its first round of daily coronavirus cleaning. 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