The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1913-09-20
10000 TIED UP IN
WORST SUBWAY JAM
Derailed Local at Brooklyn
Bridge Blockades System
Four Hours.
IN RUSH TINE
Homegoing Crowds Packed In
Trains Strung Along
for Miles.


The subway suffered the worst tieup
last nisht that II has had for years
General Manager Frank Hedley admitted
that more than $4,000 persons were more
than an hour late in getting home BE-
cause Of II and the number Of people
who were delayed in lessor degree must
be rec,soned 1T more than 100000.
The tieup. caused by deraiiment OF
a southbound local train near the Brook
lyn Bridge spread to all four tracks
within fifteen minutes. and beginning at
5:i2 had not completely ended until after
. o'clock, although the worst Of 1t was
over at 8 o'clock
For four hours there was no local ser.
vice south Of Fourteenth street; for two
hours people entering the local stations
between the Grand Centra, and Four
teenth street were not kept back by sub
way suards
There were many complaints from per-
sons who entered stations north Of the
Grand Central. and whose ticket were ac-
cepted without a word Of warning about
the conditions. Many men in hurry felt
| that the company should have warned
people at all stations. 70 that they could
take elevated or trolley cars to their des-
tfnations.
| II took one train thirty lone minutes
exactly to get from the Grand Central
to Fourteenth street and twenty six min
utes from there to the Brooklyn Bridge
station.
Except for the tieup Of September 5.
| when rain flooded the subway and caused
a complete suspension Of traffic for four
hours In the early morning. when traffic
| Ii light, subway officials could not re-
member so serious = failure to handle
the crowds smoothly and quickly.
| Accident at B,ls o'Cleek.
| The local train which caused all the
trouble pulled out Of the Brooklyn Bridge
station headed for the City Hall station
At 81? o'clock. There y . sharp curve
at the south corner Of the Brooklyn
Bridge station.
\ Five Of the six cars in the local train
rounded the curve safely. but the front
truck Of the last car rolled on the
tracks. the top Of the car struck snnartly
the roof Of the car ahead. damaging both
slightly. and was dragged along the tim
bers for a few feet until the motorman
stopped the train.
The track was ripped OF for twenty
feet and there was no place to get the
car out Of the way Of the rest OF the
traffic except by relaying the track and
jacking the car hack on the rails.
Hendway at this time Of the evening Is
the same on all four tracks. a train every
minute and forty -eight seconds. At the
moment the accident happened there were
five locals between the Fourteenth stree,
station and the Brooklyn Bridge. BE.
fore Mr. Hedley could stop other locals
from leaving Fourteenth street the trains
had piled up solidly all the way to tina,
| station and some distance beyond.
, Express Tracks Jamm~d.
/ Orders were given to divert the loca
trains above Fourteenth street to tn,
express tracks. There is a crossover be
, tween Fourteenth and Eighteenth street
This doubled the congestion of trains o,
the southbound express tracks and tn,
I crowd was 20 hard to handle that sool
= the express trains were crawling alonl
e behind each other. making long stop
= at stations because of the thousands o
+. people who damned into the doorway
and frequent stops between stations he
: cause Of the congestion ahead.
!, The heat was unbearable. The guard
e turned on the fans. hut this had littl
effect in clearing the air. made stlfiin
by thousands. and the jam In each cal
usually so bad in rush hours. had tight
ened so that many women were nearl
. overcome
The express stations held such crowd
- that 1t was considered a danger. A
y Fourteenth street after the platform ha
people jammed together on every inc
. OF II and overnowing up the stairs an
all the way to the ticket chopper guard
, held others back. letting them into tn
:, station a few at a time as trains slowl
:. relieved the pack.
n whole System Blocked.
4 The congestion spread all through tn
system. The northbound express train
~ had to carry traffic bound In that direc
- tlon without the aid of locals and hal
!. an hour after the accident the situatio
was Just as bad on the northbound track
as It was ON the south.
). Manager Hediey got a wrecking ere
of seventy five men at fifteen minutes
6, and 1t took an hour and half to rela
the track where It had been ripped VI
The rush hours usually last until ten {
!. fifteen minutes after g.; At o'clock lal
night the trains Were carrying the
Il o'clock rush.
At 7:3o the two damaged cars were ru
onto a siding south Of the Brookly
D Bridge station and from that time on
10 took about an hour and a half to g
~ the locals banked north Of the Brookly
:" Bridge in and out OF the City Hall ST.
ton and started OH the northbound tri
!" Mr.. Hedley said that there were NJ
more than twenty, passengers on the ira
" which caused the trouble. They we
=" slightly toited, but II any one was hu
- at all 1t did not come to the attentit
- - Of the police or the Interborough OIL
=" cials.
''The schedule calls for such close hea
- way at that time Of night" said NJ
" " Hsdley. that any miss throws the. who
~ line out of gear. We run thirty -thr
',s and ons-t third trains on each Of the 70
''s tracks each hour at that time, tot
Of I33 l-y trains an houy. through NJ