Track Issue May Have Caused Coney Island Train Derailment: MTA

CONEY ISLAND, NY — A train derailment that brought Brooklyn F trains to a screeching halt in Brooklyn Wednesday afternoon could have been caused by track issues, authorities said.

Authorities responded to the derailment of a northbound F train traveling from the W 8th Street-NY Aquarium station to the Neptune Avenue station about 12:25 p.m., according to the NYPD and city Transit department.

No injuries were reported, according to the FDNY.

Some 37 people, including three crew members, were evacuated from both sides of the train by Wednesday afternoon, according to Davey. All-in-all, it took an hour to get all the passengers off the train, said FDNY representative Mike Mandala.

Authorities said the derailment could have to do with the track. But, a review of the track's geometry found no issues in the area of the derailment as recently as November, Davey said.

"Our focus will be on the track, it looks like there may have been a track issue,” said Richard Davey, President of New York City Transit.

“The track needs to be straight in order for a train to run on top of it safely without a slow speed derailment as we had here so we’re gonna look at that and see."

F trains were halted in both directions between Kings Highway and Coney Island-Stillwell Avenue, authorities said. Authorities expected the F train to return to normal service by rush hour Thursday, Davey said.

Most southbound F trains would stop at Church Avenue, and service between Church Avenue and Kings Highway will be extremely limited, authorities said.

It's the second train derailment in under a week in New York City. On Thursday, a train crash and derailment injured 26 people on the Upper West Side. The Upper West Side and Coney Island derailment did not seem to be related, Davey said Wednesday.

MTA CEO and Chair Janno Lieber on Monday told WNYC the Upper West Side crash did not shake his confidence in the subway system's safety mechanisms.

"I'm really confident in the safety record of New York City transit, of our subway system, comparatively, it is by far the safest way to get around and we're looking at making it safer," Lieber said.

Davey agreed with Lieber's confidence Wednesday after the Coney Island derailment.

"Customers should feel safe taking the service,” Davey said. "I took the subway to work this morning I’ll be taking it home this evening no doubt."