M.T.A. Chief Presses New York City for Funding After G Train Derails
By EMMA G. FITZSIMMONS
SEPT. 11, 2015
Metropolitan Transportation Authority workers at the scene of the G train derailment late Thursday night. Credit Marc A. Hermann/MTA New York City Transit
After a subway train derailed in Brooklyn, the chairman of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority on Friday issued a scathing statement that sought to call attention to New York City’s reluctance to pay more toward the agency’s capital infrastructure plan.
“I am tired of writing letters to city officials that result only in vague calls for more conversations,” the chairman, Thomas F. Prendergast, said in the statement. “The sooner we can end these games and get to work on rebuilding our transit network, the better we can serve the 8.5 million customers who rely on the M.T.A. every day.”
The derailment happened around 10:30 p.m. on Thursday, when a southbound G train made contact with a deteriorating section of a wall near the Hoyt-Schermerhorn station. Three people were taken to hospitals with minor injuries, and about 80 passengers were evacuated from the train, walking through the tunnel to the station.
Mr. Prendergast noted that the 2015-19 capital program “allocates $927.5 million for repairing and rebuilding subway line structures, including bench walls such as the one involved in last night’s derailment.” None of that money can be spent, he said, “until the State Capital Program Review Board approves our program, which can only happen when the city agrees to pay its fair share.”
Workers inspecting the damage in the tunnel. Credit Transport Workers Union Local 100
In July, Mr. Prendergast proposed that the state pay $8.3 billion and the city pay $3.2 billion toward the authority’s $29.8 billion capital plan to maintain and improve the system. Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo, who reappointed Mr. Prendergast to serve as chairman this year, agreed to the framework, saying the state would pay its share and calling on Mayor Bill de Blasio to do the same.
Mr. de Blasio’s office criticized Mr. Prendergast’s comments, saying it was “irresponsible to play politics with people’s lives.” The city met an earlier request from the authority, increasing its contribution from past years, said Amy Spitalnick, a spokeswoman for the mayor.
“Yet as we have long said, we stand ready and willing to have a comprehensive conversation on the future of this vital state authority,” Ms. Spitalnick said.
At the derailment site on Friday, large piles of concrete debris were strewed along the tracks. The authority said the debris fell onto the track, causing the front two wheels of the train car to derail. The concrete came from a so-called bench wall, which contains ducts for power and communications cables and serves as a maintenance and emergency walkway, officials said.
Officials were conducting an investigation to determine the root cause of the derailment and any factors that contributed to it, Mr. Prendergast said. The authority was responsible for the system’s safety, he said, and an “incident of this magnitude is unacceptable.”
The derailment caused widespread delays and suspended service on the G line on Friday, but by 4:30 p.m., the authority had restored normal service on the line. Crews removed debris from the site of the derailment and completed repairs and inspections, officials said.
The last major subway derailment was in May 2014, when an F train derailed in Queens, injuring 30 passengers and two crew members. The authority said in a report in December that workers had failed to spot and repair a track defect at the site.