Volunteer program that launched to provide safe escorts expands in Manhattan

UNION SQUARE, Manhattan (WABC) -- A volunteer program that launched in January to accompany residents for their safety as they walk to and from mass transit stops in Brooklyn has now expanded to cover all of Manhattan below 59th Street.

Organizers and volunteers from 'SafeWalks NYC' gathered on Friday night in Union Square to bond and celebrate their expansion.

The organization has grown to be comprised of four teams - with more than one hundred volunteers in all.

"Seeing the pictures of the ladies assaulted, honestly I was angry," SafeWalks NYC Founder Peter Kerre said.

Troubled by the alarming spike in crime, activist Kerre set up an Instagram page called SafeWalks NYC.



"The goal is just be a presence," Kerre said. "We're here, we can walk you to the station, to an area where you feel safe."

You can sign up or volunteer on your phone by heading to their Instagram page.


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