The MTA says copper thieves were to blame for power problems that brought down the A line in part of Queens for hours and caused headaches for as many as 100,000 commuters throughout the city during the peak of the morning rush.
Service between Rockaway Boulevard and Broad Channel was suspended for several hours Tuesday night and Wednesday after thieves ripped out about 500 feet of cable from 12 locations along the tracks near the Howard Beach stop, the MTA said.
“This morning’s service disruption was directly caused by the theft of cable from along the subway right of way. This led to delays and crowding along all 31 miles of the A train, and forced thousands of Rockaways customers to use shuttle buses to get to work,” said Carmen Bianco, the MTA New York City Transit president . “We are working closely with the NYPD Transit Bureau to help them investigate this crime and identify the culprits responsible.”
The theft was discovered at about 11:30 p.m. Tuesday, when a Manhattan-bound train lost power near the Howard Beach station, the MTA says. About 150 straphangers were aboard the train when it lost power, and MTA workers brought in another train behind it, so they were able to get off the disabled cars.
The MTA says the stolen cable was likely sold for scrap.
The theft of the copper cables caused service disruptions that reverberated through the entire length of the A and C lines Wednesday, the MTA said.
Service was suspended between Rockaway Boulevard and Broad Channel through the morning rush, forcing thousands of commuters in the Rockaways to rely on shuttle buses or other forms of transportation.
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And because A trains are stored in Rockaway Park -- on the Rockaway Peninsula -- the MTA said many trains that would otherwise be used for the morning rush were trapped, severely curtailing service on the line. Trains that were in service were terminating at the Euclid Avenue C stop, which reduced service on that line as well.
Service was partially restored by late morning, but the MTA said trains would be replaced by shuttle buses again Wednesday night for repair work. Service on the A south of Broad Channel will be suspended after 10 p.m. until 4 a.m. Thursday, according to the MTA.
As many as 100,000 commuters were affected by the outage. 40,000 of those commuters rely on the A train to get out of the Rockaways, including 3,700 who ride the train to Manhattan.
"It's a big deal. You need it, it's the only way out," said one woman who lives in the Rockaways.
Taiwann Frett, one of the drivers who manned the emergency shuttles, tried to keep everyone cool during the morning commute.
"It was a herd. It was outrageous," he said. "The people were aggravated, understandably. They're trying to get to work."
The Rockaway Ferry, which started post-Sandy as an emergency route, could have been a backup plan for some of the stuck straphangers. That service was discontinued a couple of months ago.
"It's easier, it's faster," said Richard Cotter.
To see the latest information on the line's status, visit mta.info.
Anyone with information on the theft is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 800-577-TIPS.
