Evening rush hour on the Queens Boulevard line turned chaotic Tuesday after a person was struck and killed on the express track near the 63rd Drive–Rego Park station just before 5:15 p.m., snarling subway service for thousands of commuters.
The impact shut down a key stretch of the E, F, M and R lines in Queens as emergency crews moved in, power was cut and at least one crowded train had to be evacuated on the line.
According to the New York Daily News, FDNY responders shut off power to the third rail while investigators worked on the express track near 63rd Dr.–Rego Park, and that outage stretched into the evening while crews remained at the scene.
Service Impacts And Reroutes
The MTA reported widespread disruptions across Queens, with E, F, M and R trains suspended through much of the borough and a tangle of reroutes in place to keep Manhattan service alive.
E trains were shifted to run along the C line on Manhattan’s west side north of Port Authority, while F trains were sent over the M line through Manhattan to get around the blocked Queens segment, according to MTA alerts. Riders were warned to expect heavy delays and to rethink their travel plans while crews worked to restore power and clear the scene.
To ease the crush of displaced subway riders between Queens and Manhattan, the Long Island Rail Road was honoring OMNY taps between Jamaica Station and both Penn Station and Grand Central, the New York Daily News reported. Transit officials say temporary steps like expanded OMNY acceptance sometimes come into play when major subway corridors are knocked out, to help keep riders moving.
What Riders Should Know
Commuters traveling through Queens were urged to budget extra time, watch for rolling delays and consider alternate routes or commuter rail options. The MTA advised customers to check real-time service status for the latest on reroutes and restorations as the evening wore on.
Officials did not immediately release the identity of the person who was struck. NYPD and transit investigators remained on scene into the evening as the system slowly recovered from the rush-hour shock.
