Harlem Subway Derailment Cost MTA Millions, Report Says

HARLEM, NY — The Metropolitan Transit Authority spent millions in repairs after an A train derailed while barreling through Harlem in 2017, according to new reports.

An MTA investigation into the June 27 derailment, which injured more than 30 people, revealed that the agency spent $3.4 million in the aftermath of the crash, the Daily News first reported. The costs covered the price of new train cars as well as other parts and labor, according to the report.

The replacement of two train cars damaged during the derailment proved to be the most expensive part of the repair effort at $3.1 million, the Daily News reported.

The southbound A train derailed while approaching the 125th Street and St. Nicholas Avenue subway station, MTA officials said at the time of the crash. Two cars from the train left the track and slammed into a tunnel wall, injuring more than 30 people and forcing hundreds of passengers to leave the train and walk through the tunnels to safety, officials said.

None of the people injured during the derailment suffered life-threatening injuries.

The MTA blamed the derailment on unsecured construction material being left in the middle of the train tracks near 125th Street. It's common practice for workers to store equipment in between railroad tracks but equipment must be properly secured to avoid an accident, MTA officials said. Two maintenance supervisors were suspended the day after the derailment.

Read the full Daily News report here.

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