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More Smashed Windows Found On 7 Line Subway Car In Queens
By
Sophia Chang
Published Sep 12, 2020
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By
Sophia Chang
Published Sep 12, 2020
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Another 7 line subway car was found with 18 smashed windows in Queens Friday night, the latest in a summer-long streak of vandalism that has cost the MTA hundreds of thousands of dollars to repair.
Around 11:37 p.m. on Friday, a 7 train pulled into 61st Street-Woodside station and an MTA police officer found the smashed windows in the second-to-last car, the NYPD said.
The train was taken out of service, and the MTA estimated cost to repair the windows would be $9,000.
The MTA said there have been more than 400 subway windows broken since May, in more than 64 reported incidents according to police. While the 7 train has been the main target, train cars on the 2 and 3 lines have also been vandalized.
(Update: The MTA said Saturday that more than 500 windows have been broken since May, resulting in more that $350,000 worth of damage.)
The MTA said they’re running short on replacement glass inventory. The agency also has warned that the streak of vandalism may lead to service delays as trains are pulled out of service for repairs.
"This criminal act means taxpayer money will be diverted from providing service, it unnecessarily delays riders, and puts an entire train into the repair yard. We are cooperating with the NYPD which is aggressively investigating and the perpetrator, when arrested, will face both criminal prosecution and a demand for full restitution,” said MTA spokesperson Kayla Shults in a statement Saturday.
The investigation was ongoing, the police said. In early August, NYPD released a photo of a man they said was "wanted in connection to a citywide criminal mischief pattern.”
NYPD released a photo of a man wanted in connection with a string of subway window vandalism.
NYPD handout
Meanwhile, the MTA is looking at a dire financial forecast with estimates that it's losing $200 million a week that's caused by a dramatic drop in ridership and tax revenue, and the increased cost of cleaning buses and trains during the pandemic. Chairman and CEO of the MTA, Pat Foye, has said if service levels continue at this rate the financial shortfall will be far worse than the Great Depression.
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Sophia Chang
Sophia Chang is a former WNYC and Gothamist reporter.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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