A collision between two subways occurred in Manhattan on Thursday when a train carrying about 300 passengers ran into the tracks of an out-of-service train because it was unclear which vehicle had the right of way, according to three transportation officials knowledgeable about the crash investigation.
The collision, which injured 26 people, led to the derailment of both trains and also disrupted service on some of the city's busiest routes a day later.
Human error appeared to be the cause of the collision, said the officials, who requested anonymity because it is an ongoing investigation.
It was not immediately clear who was to blame. Officials said the crew of the out-of-service train made a mistake; The head of a transport workers' union suspected that the accident was caused by a supervisor.
Both the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, which operates the subways, and the National Transportation Safety Board are investigating the collision. There were no serious injuries.
Jennifer Homendy, the chairwoman of the NTSB, said during a news conference Friday afternoon that 13 specialists were investigating the incident. The performance of the employees who were deployed both on the trains and in the subway control center is examined.
“It's easy to blame people,” Ms Homendy said when asked if the crash was caused by one person's mistake. “Human error is always a symptom of a system that needs to be redesigned.”
On Thursday, just before the afternoon rush hour, a No. 1 train — which runs along the entire West Side of Manhattan — stalled at 79th Street after vandals triggered the train's emergency brakes, MTA officials said at a news conference. Passengers got off the stalled train, which went out of service and slowly made its way to a storage yard further up the city, according to transportation officials familiar with the investigation.
There was a crew of four transit workers on board the out-of-service train, forcing the diversion of other No. 1 trains. According to MTA officials with knowledge of the investigation, the subway's signaling system near the 96th Street station directed the out-of-service train to stop at a red light and gave the green light for a rerouted train to parallel it Tracks, then go forward again. The out-of-service train kept pushing forward, causing the slow-moving accident, officials said.
One of the officials said the agency's investigation was focused on whether anyone was not following protocols. Officials said there was a miscommunication, but investigators have not yet determined who was responsible.
Richard Davis, president of the Transport Workers Union Local 100, told reporters Friday that people in management are “controlling the train.”
A derailed car from the train that was carrying passengers and another from the out-of-service train were still stuck in a subway tunnel near 96th Street on Friday as crews worked to free them to bring the rails.
The passenger train's stalled car was in a low-height area, making it difficult to put it back on the tracks, said Janno Lieber, the chairman of the MTA. The wheels came off the front of the decommissioned train, making it difficult to move, MTA officials said.
Subway service has been suspended on Lines 1 and 3 between Times Square and Harlem, a stretch that includes some of the most congested stations in the heart of the city. Line 2 on the west side did not run. Although MTA officials had hoped to resume service Friday, the agency noted that the suspensions would remain in effect at least throughout the day.
Additional buses were used to ferry passengers up and down the west side. In total, 870,000 passengers travel on lines 1, 2 and 3 on an average weekday.
Subway derailments involving passengers have been rare in recent years. The most recent incident occurred on September 20, 2020, when an express train with 100 people on board came off the tracks near 14th Street. Three passengers suffered minor injuries.
On Thursday, firefighters and MTA workers helped about 300 people evacuate the train carrying passengers involved in the collision, as well as another 300 to 400 passengers on a train behind it, after power was shut off at the station.
Liset Cruz contributed reporting