Two photos sum up how subway disruptions are affecting New York commuters on a regular basis:
Fire on A train, switched to 1. More delays. Now 168 st. station packed w/people trying to get in elevators. WTF @NYGovCuomo@NYCMayor@NY1pic.twitter.com/iwibqgTq8c
— Natalie Brito (@NatalieHBrito) July 17, 2017A track fire at the 145th Street subway station caused major delays along the A, B, C, and D lines on Monday morning.
But the disruption also caused severe overcrowding on subway platforms as stranded commuters tried to switch from the A train to the 1:
A train suspended due to track fire. No. 1 station so crowded we can't even get to platform. pic.twitter.com/zS0tJAO92D
— Emma G. Fitzsimmons (@emmagf) July 17, 2017
yoooooo 1 train is insanity rn lmaooooooo pic.twitter.com/3dXyPPFAcn
— eleanor rigby (@robokitty99) July 17, 2017People started cramming onto subways, leading some to ride between subway cars — an extremely dangerous thing to do:
10 full trains have gone by and people are now riding inbetween the train cars @MTApic.twitter.com/JUXTg0ph6b
— Morgan Avery (@Ih8morganavery) July 17, 2017Lines were also lengthy for commuters attempting to take the bus as an alternative:
@NYGovCuomo@BilldeBlasio@MTA@c_pichardo@ydanis@JMartinezNYC This is the scene at 145th waiting for the M4 bus. pic.twitter.com/toQedygeD0
— Ryan Mensing (@ryan_mensing) July 17, 2017Lyft prices skyrocketed:
#mymorningcommute#sucks@MTA trains are on fire @lyft charge INSANE $$ and not even all the way to work, now been on 3 buses #happymondaypic.twitter.com/IcJmF9yWqX
— Leah Danley (@35LeahD) July 17, 2017A New York City Fire Department spokeswoman told am New York that the fire was sparked by garbage on the track.
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority has been attempting since August to reduce the amount of trash on subway tracks by cleaning them more often.
The MTA has also ordered three vacuum trains designed to collect and clear garbage. The first two are set to arrive this year, according to a 2016 press release.
"A track fire shortly after 7:30 am caused major delays on the A,B, C, and D lines during the height of the morning rush," an MTA spokesperson told Business Insider. "As an alternative, customers were sent redirected to the 1 line which experienced heavy volume. We are reviewing the entire incident, we apologize for the inconvenience, and we appreciate our customers’ patience."
The track fire highlights the general fragility of New York's aging subway system as disruptions pile up.
Gov. Andrew Cuomo declared in June that the MTA was in a state of emergency. As a result, MTA Chairman Joseph Lhota has until the end of August to assess capital needs for cars, tracks, and signals. Cuomo also said he would add $1 billion to the MTA capital plan.
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