Six months later, Hurricane Sandy is still battering the subways.
Subway service delays were up 29 percent in the first three months of 2013 compared to the same period last year, the Straphangers Campaign said today.
Reports of subway track problems are up 134 percent this year — possibly a sign of lingering problems from subway tunnel flooding caused by the storm, the Straphangers say.
“Superstorm Sandy continues to hurt subway service,” said Gene Russianoff, the Straphangers Campaign’s staff attorney.
Service was already getting worse before the storm hit, the Straphangers say.
L train service has deteriorated the most, the study found — the number of service alerts in the first 10 months of 2012 jumped to 134, a 60 percent increase over 2011.
In terms of the sheer number of alerts, the F train is worst, with 225 reported delays in the first 10 months of 2011
Service on the G line is getting better, the study found — the MTA alerted riders to 19 percent fewer delays on that line during 2012.
Mechanical problems are growing on the MTA’s aging train fleet, and have overtaken signal issues as a cause of delay, the data shows.
Problems with train equipment were behind 949 delay reports in the first 10 months of 2012, a 25 percent increase over 2011.
Some 894 delays were caused by signal issues in the first 10 months of 2012, about the same as 2011.
The Straphangers’ study is based on MTA text and e-mail service alerts. The MTA said the study “does not paint a full picture of service issues.”