Private security guards hired by the MTA to help curb soaring subway crime told The Post on Friday they are there just to “observe” and alert cops to issues — but some of them appeared to even fail at that. 

The pilot project, which sources said is costing taxpayers a couple million dollars, included two security guards manning both exits at the West Fourth Street subway station in Manhattan on Friday morning.

At one point, a fare-beater hopped the turnstile right in front of the guards — who looked on and did nothing. 

“We are here as more of a deterrence. We can call dispatch, that’s about it,” one of the guards told The Post when asked if they are supposed to confront or chase after fare beaters. 

It did not appear that the guards even called dispatch.

At the Roosevelt Avenue/103rd Street station in Queens, the security guards there also watched and did nothing as a stream of fare-beaters hopped the turnstile and walked through emergency exits at one entrance. 

The two guards on duty at the station were only positioned at one of of its two entrances, leaving the other entryway unmanned — and scofflaws to openly flout the rules there, too.

“Honestly, when we’re standing here, they still jump the turnstile, curse at us. They try to push us out the way. It’s not worth it,” one of the guards said. 

On Thursday, the MTA revealed that it had hired private security guards for a number of Big Apple subway stations to crack down on fare-evaders, many of whom they claim end up committing serious crimes underground. 

The unarmed hired hands are on duty in shifts between 7 a.m. and 11 p.m. Monday through Friday at stations including: West Fourth; Myrtle and Wyckoff, Halsey Street and Wyckoff Avenue in Brooklyn, and Roosevelt Avenue/103rd St. and Jackson Heights/ Roosevelt Avenue in Queens, law enforcement sources said. 

The private guards, provided by Allied Universal, are making around $23 an hour, one of them said, and the program is costing taxpayers a couple of million dollars, sources said. 

At the next MTA board meeting in November, members will decide how much more the program should expand, sources said. 

During a board meeting Thursday, MTA CEO Janno Lieber insisted the presence of the guards has reduced fare evasions — but the program doesn’t appear to have had any affect on that, and straphangers aren’t convinced it will work. 

“It would be better if maybe they build shields that will prevent people from being pushed on the tracks. [The guards are] just standing there. People will jump turnstiles anyway. [The scofflaws] don’t really care,” said Willa Lin, 22, at the West Fourth station. 

“Honestly it’s not that safe,” Lin added. “I’m not sure what is the best way to do it, but they need to invest in more safety measures. I am Asian, and we are exposed to even more crimes. … I am much more conscious about my safety [these days].” 

Vincent Flores, a Manhattan student, said he doesn’t think the plan will be effective, either. 

“They increased police presence on the subway, but that hasn’t stopped stabbings and  people being pushed on the tracks. Lately, the mood in the city has been attacking. I’m gay, and recently people on the streets have shouted slurs at me,” said Flores, 19. 

“[While on the subway] I know I can’t have my music on high volume. When I walk down into the subway [at the West Fourth station], I see people shooting heroin in their legs.”

On Friday, Mayor Eric Adams was asked by a reporter at an unrelated press conference about the MTA’s move.

He dodged the question, instead only responding that the NYPD is doing an “amazing job” making subways safer — even as major felonies continue to skyrocket on the rails. 

Hizzoner pointed out that subway crime these days is technically lower than it was in 2019 and prior years — while failing to mention that in reality, straphangers are more likely to be victimized now than they were in the past when low ridership numbers are taken into account. 

“Now what’s fascinating is that the last time we had real ridership was in 2019. Our index crimes are lower than 2019, 2018, 2017 and the last 10 year period,” Adams said when asked about the new security guards. 

“So the numbers bear out that the officers are doing an amazing job, but that means nothing if people don’t feel safe, and the best way to do that is to have the omnipresence of our officers.”

While there are on average six felony crimes on the rails each day, a number Adams wants to reduce to zero, he once again said they’re fighting perception that the transit system is unsafe. 

“We’re also dealing with how people are feeling. We have 3.5 million riders and I’m gonna keep saying this over and over again, 3.5 million people use our subway system and they get to and from their destination with no problems at all,” he said. 

“But, if you are seeing disorder, if you are seeing people loud, disruptive, a person acting disorderly, it’s going to play into what you’re feeling.” 

He said one way to make people feel safe is to have “uniformed presence” on the rails, which  is why the NYPD has been dispatching 1,000 extra cops on the subways each day, many of whom are working overtime to fill the quota. 

Even though transit crime continues to tick up, he said the plan is helping straphangers feel safer while commuting. 

“People stop me, they say ‘we feel better when we see that uniformed officer walking through the trains. We see some former security personnel,’” Adams said. 

“So we know that uniform allows people to feel safer and we want to do everything possible… we have to address what people are feeling and that’s the goal.”

Additional reporting by Larry Celona and Bernadette Hogan