By Carol Tannenhauser
In the second tragedy at the 96th Street/Broadway subway station in as many weeks, a 32-year-old woman was killed by a southbound 2 train approaching the station just before 1 a.m. on Saturday morning, according to an NYPD spokesperson.
Initial reports indicated that the woman had been “struck” by the train; however, police later said that, prior to her death, “witnesses had observed her standing between two train cars, possibly smoking. The train stopped suddenly,” the spokesperson said.
When police arrived, they found the woman “under the train…unconscious and unresponsive. EMS pronounced her dead at the location. The incident is still under investigation as to whether she jumped or fell.”
The woman’s identity is being withheld pending family notification.
So very sad. One ill thought out decision should not result in death. Sending my thoughts to her friends and family as they process this difficult loss during the holiday season.
Folks there’s more to this story than someone just “standing between two train cars.” I grew upon NYC riding the subways and I stood between subway cars many times as a way to avoid crowds – and I never came close to falling onto the tracks. In fact it’s impossible to end up on the subway tracks just by standing between cars. There’s more to this story.
Coming home tonight on subway made a point to walk over doors and look down. There is ample room for all but the largest sized person to fall between subway cars.
Ends of subway cars have half moon shape platform that at narrowest gap (center where two plates almost meet) have a gap of several inches while train is on level grade.
However as those plates curve left or right there is plenty of room for someone to slide right down onto the tracks. The spring like “ropes” that help link cars together do not extend very far down.
That’s true. It’s one reason why they began prohibiting walking between cars a number of years ago. There are a number of things riders do that endanger them – leaning over platforms, standing too close to platforms, charging into closing doors. Riding the subway is no different in that regard than being a pedestrian. Common sense is required to avoid situations where you put yourself in danger. And locking end doors in subway cars woud create bigger problems – preventing passengers from quickly escaping a dangerous situation within one car (although the 75-foot cars, like those on the “D,” have their doors locked because walking between those cars would be even more dangerous than walking between cars on most other rolling stock, because of the offset between cars) . With its usual snail-like response time, the MTA is finally producing a small (test) number of articulated cars (5 in a group) that have protected walkways between the cars. Of course, the old BMT lines had the “D-type” triplex cars almost one hundred years ago that ran through the 1960’s. Everything old is new again.
Despair..in NYC