As reported by the NY Times:

“Of all the images from the 1970′s and 1980′s of a city out of control, perhaps none is etched more deeply into the public consciousness than that of the graffiti-covered subway train screeching into a station, every inch of its surface covered with a rich patina of spray-painted slashes and scrawls.

It took decades of work and millions of dollars to clean up the trains. But now officials are seeing a fresh surge of subway graffiti, in which windows are irreparably damaged with acid. Raising the specter of the bad old days, transit officials are vowing to fight a problem they say is even more menacing than the graffiti of decades past.”

What NYC subway cars used to look like in the 1970s . . .

A couple years back Adidas created the End to End Project exhibit in Soho for its End to End sneaker line. They had the artists that created the designs for the shoes come to the states and tag a replica of a NYC subway car.

As reported by the Gothamist, a City Councilman said:

“Graffiti has nothing to do with sneakers, so basically it’s just another despicable corporation trying to look edgy by promoting a crime in search of profits. [It's] like posting a billboard calling on teens to break the law.”

The city also granted and then revoked a permit for artists to tag fake subway cars for Marc Ecko’s video game debut.

Check out the disclaimer that was put up at the Adidas event: