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The MTA's Debris-Catching Nets Are Now Scary "Pendulous Sacks" Bulging With Snow
By
Jake Offenhartz
Published Feb 3, 2021
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By
Jake Offenhartz
Published Feb 3, 2021
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The snow has finally let up, but some New Yorkers are now worried about a new threat from above, thanks to the MTA's $325 million effort to fortify its elevated subway lines with protective netting.
Those nylon nets, installed last year to catch track debris following several near-miss incidents, have proven surprisingly effective at trapping the piles of snow dumped on NYC this week. The heavy accumulation is now weighing down several miles of netting, creating alarming aerial snow dunes that are blocking traffic and dangling perilously over the heads of passing pedestrians.
Under the 1 train in the Kingsbridge section of the Bronx, the trapped snow has contributed to "vast pendulous sacks, hanging so low in some places, you can reach up and touch them," according to local resident Fiona Brady.
"Their weight is bending and completely obscuring some sets of traffic lights, and nets are catching on and being torn open by passing trucks and busses," Brady, a 60-year-old freelance editor, added. "It's really pretty solidly packed."
MTA spokesperson Tim Minton acknowledged the situation, and said the agency was dealing with similar snow-filled nets in Manhattan and Queens. Minton also insisted the nets were not a threat to pedestrians since they weren't above sidewalks — despite photos that clearly showed New Yorkers waiting for the bus beneath the sagging snow blobs.
Snow-filled nets under the 1 train, near the 231st Street station in the Bronx
Fiona Brady
"Preemptive Inspections by NYC Transit during the storm identified nets in six areas below elevated tracks filling with snow and streets below were closed off to minimize risk," Minton said in an emailed statement. "Snow has since been taken out from three of the areas and all are expected to be cleared by Thursday.”
The clearing process appears to rely on transit employees striking at the nets with shovels, "releasing the trapped snow directly in front of, and onto themselves," according to Brady. "It was kind of a tragic situation," she added.
Others noted a certain irony in the fact that the MTA's plan to stop one problem — plummeting pieces of elevated track infrastructure — had seemingly created an entirely new type of falling hazard.
"The MTA is very reactionary," said Trammell Thompson, a subway conductor and union activist. "They needed a quick solution. They didn’t take into account the nets catching snow."
"They have to fix this before it turns into ice and come crashing down," he added.
Minton, the MTA spokesperson, declined to say which roads were closed as a result of the snow nets, noting that it was changing "hour by hour." No injuries or property damage has been reported so far.
If you come across any drooping snow nets, send a photos to [email protected], then get out of the way.
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Jake Offenhartz
Jake Offenhartz is a former 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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