More MTA Delays During Tuesday Evening Commute

MTA riders experienced another nightmare commute Tuesday evening when signal problems at DeKalb Avenue once again caused major backups, service changes, and headaches.

At least one MTA train was stuck on the Manhattan Bridge for approximately half an hour yesterday evening, July 11, NBC New York reports.

Due to the signal problems at the DeKalb stop, B and D trains were running with delays during the evening commute. Some southbound D trains were running on the F line from West 4th Street in Manhattan all the way to Coney Island and some N trains were rerouted to the D line track in Brooklyn from 36th Street to Coney Island/Stillwell Ave.

There was another fatality on the subway tracks yesterday afternoon as well. Shortly after 3pm Tuesday a man was struck and killed by a southbound F train at the East Broadway stop in the Lower East Side, according to Metro.

This incident caused additional service changes to the A, C, F, and G lines.

These commuting headaches come just days after NYC Comptroller Scott Stringer’s office released a study that states approximately three out of four subway riders have been late to work or an important appointment due to delays on the MTA, AMNY says.

Representatives from Stringer’s office interviewed more than 1,200 subway riders at 143 subway station across the city last month and learned that approximately 18 percent of those interviewed have gotten into trouble at work over the past three month due to tardiness. The report shows that approximately 13 percent of interviewees lost wages and about two percent were fired as a result of MTA delays.

The MTA’s response? Along with offering tardy notes online to delayed riders, Governor Cuomo has brought back former MTA chairman Joe Lhota to try to clean up the mess, the New York Times reported in June.

Lhota served as MTA chairman for about a year, stepping down in 2012 to run for New York City mayor. He is credited with the system’s recovery after Superstorm Sandy.

This past Sunday, July 9, during a press conference addressing the summer-long track work being done at Penn Station that will affect Amtrak, Long Island Rail Road, and NJ Transit users, Lhota enraged concerned commuters by telling them to “Try to come in earlier,” and “Instead of taking the 7:05, take the 6:55,” the New York Post says.

Be sure to check the MTA’s Twitter feed @NYCTSubway for info on delays and service changes before your commute.