Vehicle traveling underneath the Queensboro Plaza station (Google)
Oct. 22, 2019. By Shane O’Brien
A rusty bolt reportedly fell from the elevated 7 train tracks in Long Island City on Tuesday morning and smashed the roof of a car passing below, according to a report in Gothamist.
The bolt crashed through the roof of Kew Gardens resident Phillip Garcia’s car as he passed under the Queensboro Plaza station, he told Gothamist. The bolt missed Garcia by inches, according to the report, although he was unhurt.
“You just hear a loud sound, and there’s a huge, five-pound bolt through your sunroof,” Garcia told Gothamist. “I’ve seen things fall from the 7 train since I was a teenager, but I’ve never seen anything like that.”
Piece of wood smashes through windshield of car on 65th Street in Woodside in February
A protective covering below Garcia’s sunroof stopped the seven inch bolt from landing inside the car.
This is one of many incidents this year where debris has fallen from the elevated tracks along the 7 line and nearly caused a fatality.
In February and March, there were two incidents near the 61st Street – Woodside station where falling debris struck and damaged cars below.
In August, a chunk of metal fell from the elevated 7 line close to the 52nd Street – Lincoln Avenue station and smashed onto the pavement.
The incidents prompted the MTA to announce earlier this month that it would be installing safety netting under all elevated subway tracks in New York City to improve safety for motorists and pedestrians passing below.
The nets are being installed as part of the MTA’s $51.5 billion 2020-2024 capital budget and are estimated to cost $325 million.
The MTA also announced last week that it would be removing decorative tiles from the elevated tracks along Queens Boulevard from 32nd Place to 48th Street. The tiles have fallen off and struck vehicles on at least two occasions this year.
A tile fell off and landed on a car in Sunnyside in January (Photo: Vitali Ogorodnikov)
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3 Comments
Where are those precious nets?
Correction: Gothamist story link says his name is Philip Garcia, not Frank Garcia.
And their story update this afternoon says the MTA said it was under the N/W line south of QB Plaza, so the bolt was not from the 7 train. And was just inspected last week!
Wow, how reassuring.
I’m getting on the 7 in a half hour. I’m 65% certain I won’t plummet to my death.