Over the past 13 days, eight people have been struck by subway trains—a tally that matches the number of New Yorkers struck during the average month. Union officials say train crews had actually noticed a surge in such incidents, dubbed "12-9s," starting late last year. "It's the most I can recall, and I've been a train operator for 26 years," said Steve Downs, union chairman of the train operators division.
According to the Daily News, transit officials and police wouldn't comment on the increase in people struck by trains, though NYPD sources said they don't believe anyone was pushed in front of a train. Many of the incidents involved suicides and attempted suicides, however there were also accidents including a man struck by a northbound 1 train at the 116th Street station who had attempted to grab something he dropped on the tracks, and a teen who lost his leg when he was struck by an N train while writing graffiti in Brooklyn.
In another incident, a woman attempted to jump in front of a train in Queens, but fell into a trough beneath the tracks and wasn't hit. No matter the outcome, such incidents can have an impact on train crews. "When you have person jump in front of your train, it's traumatizing," said motorman and union official Kevin Harrington. "The prospect of having someone jump in front of your train itself is a daily stress operators have to face."
