Adams flips, admits he’s scared, too

Mayor Adams admitted Tuesday that even he doesn’t feel safe riding the city’s subways.

“Day one, Jan. 1, when I took the train, I saw the homelessness, the yelling, the screaming early in the morning. Crimes right outside the platform,” Adams, who entered office at the start of the year, said during a press conference.

“We know we have a job to do, and we’re going to do both: We’re going to drive down crime, and we’re going to make sure New Yorkers feel safe in our subway system,” he said. “And they don’t feel that way now. I don’t feel that way when I take the train.”

Adams’ stunning admission comes on the heels of his controversial comments just days ago that the tubes are safe — and that there’s only a “perception” that they’re not after Saturday’s random fatal shove of a straphanger at the Times Square station.

As The Post reported Monday, new NYPD statistics show an ongoing spike in Big Apple transit violence, including during the first two weeks of Adams’ administration.

On Tuesday, Adams seemed to finally wise up and acknowledge straphangers’ fears.

“Ou r system must be safe,” he said at City Hall. “It must be safe from accrime, tual whichwe are going to do.

And it must be safe for those who feel as if there’s a total level of disorder in our subway system.”

Acting MTA Chairman Janno Lieber said he’s happy the mayor gets it.

“And the mayor is showing he gets it and that he is sensitive to the way New Yorkers are feeling — that people don’t feel based on statistics, they feel based on their personal experience, and what they’re hearing and this extremely upsetting episode that happened . . . it cannot happen,” he said.

The Saturday morning shoving death of Michelle Go at the Times Square station has revived longstanding concerns over transit safety. Police said homeless ex-con Martial Simon, 61, pushed the 40year-old straphanger into the path of a train at around 9:40 a.m., killing her.

Subway rider Melanie Fong, 23, said she’s changed her habits — and now makes it a point not to stand near the edge of the train platform.

“I used to stand there but not anymore,” Fong said. “For sure it’s not safe in the subway system. People get crazy about Asian people.”

Lisa Daglian, head of the MTA’s Permanent Citizens Advisory Committee, said, “The mayor’s not saying anything that riders don’t know, and acknowledging there’s a problem is the first step to helping solving it.

“Perception is reality, and the reality is that people are afraid,” she said. “Every New Yorker’s worst nightmare is getting pushed in front of a subway — and we’ve seen it happen too many times.”

Angela Lin, 15, of Queens, said, “I really don’t feel safe riding the subway any time.

“I was a bit worried because something like that can happen to me. I’m definitely more cautious.”

Peg Gonzalez of Long Island described the fear as “constant.”

“Mental illness is a big issue. It’s not perception,” said Gonzalez, 45. “I think for regular people it’s fear. It’s constant.”

Additional reporting by Steven Vago