Service suspended on MTA lines after driver bypasses barriers; incident highlights rail trespassing dangers.
BROOKLYN, N.Y. — A driver was arrested early Thursday after steering a vehicle onto the elevated MTA subway tracks in the Homecrest neighborhood of Brooklyn, suspending all train service in the area. The incident occurred just before 5:00 a.m. near the Avenue S and East 16th Street station.
Video from the scene showed a dark-colored sedan stuck between the running rails on the elevated structure, which carries the B and Q subway lines. New York City Police Department officers responded to the scene and took the driver into custody.
MTA crews immediately cut power to the third rail and worked to remove the vehicle from the tracks. No injuries were reported to the driver or any transit personnel.
While this incident involves the local subway system, it is a stark example of the dangers of rail trespassing, a critical issue affecting the entire U.S. transportation network. Trespassing on railway property is a leading cause of rail-related fatalities and a major source of service disruptions for all carriers, from local transit to freight and passenger rail.
Amtrak, which operates heavily in the New York area, frequently cites track intrusions as a primary reason for significant delays on major routes like the Northeast Regional and Acela. “Any unauthorized presence on a track forces an immediate, system-wide halt,” said a transit safety spokesperson.
The MTA reported that B and Q train service resumed with residual delays after the vehicle was successfully removed. An investigation by the NYPD is ongoing.