MTA Inspector General Orders NYC Transit Management To Undergo New Training After Escalator Investigation
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- Is there increased danger on all MTA escalators? A new report points to major mistakes by management.
In July, straphangers were trapped in the heat on the 53rd and Lexington Avenue platform underground with two broken escalators.
"There was no means to get out of the subway. It was a bit of a scary feeling," one man said.
Exasperated commuters struggled to catch their breath after finally reaching the street.
"These escalators? They're probably out for half the year," one commuter said.
At another 53rd street subway station, the escalator was totally wrecked, folding like an accordion, this time while riders were on it.
No one was injured, but it was the final straw for the MTA Inspector General, who ordered a review of the maintenance program.
The findings? That the New York City Transit's elevator and escalator departments' "significant management lapses had resulted in the frequent, unpredictable interruption and cancellation of preventive maintenance visits."
In fact, in the six months leading up to the wreck, most of the maintenance visits were incomplete or cancelled and never rescheduled.
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On Tuesday, at the 53rd and Fifth Street station, escalators going down were not working.
"Elderly people and people carrying babies in their hands go down the stairs," commuter Ade Gobran said.
"It's just very hard to come down all those steps. If it's broken, it's broken, but it does have to be fixed within a certain amount of time," commuter Eileen Skeehan said.
One year later, the same sign hangs at the top of the still-broken escalator that sparked the investigation.
"I think get the right people to do the job," one man said.
And the IG agrees. They've ordered NYC transit management to undergo new training and to enforce a stringent maintenance ticket reporting system. That directive ordered Jan. 31, but still nothing has changed at 53rd and Fifth.
The MTA says that the escalator will be fixed by Feb. 6, until then riders will have to make the 77-stair climb to the bottom.