What to Know
- Video shows the train cruising along the tracks with an open door
- Rider Jeffrey Spitery said the train barreled along like that at least from Newark to Metuchen
- NJ Transit said in a statement the train was pulled out of service and it is conducting a full investigation
A New Jersey Transit train barreled down tracks on its journey from New York City to Trenton Tuesday night for roughly eight stops -- about a 30-minute ride -- with an open door, video obtained by NBC 4 New York shows.
Rider Jeffrey Spitery said the Northeast Corridor train stopped at Newark Penn Station for 5 to 10 minutes while a conductor searched for an open door on the left side of the train. Eventually, the train pulled out and continued on its way.
Spitery says that he walked up toward a vestibule as his train approached his stop in Metuchen and noticed "a door wide open with people standing next to it while we were thundering down the track."
Spitery recorded cell phone video of the train cruising along the tracks with the door ajar. Passengers are seen moving about the vestibule, the wind generated from the moving train whipping their hair.
"It took me the entire distance of the rest of the train (about half) to find a conductor," Spitery said. "This is obviously not a safe way to operate a commuter train."
NJ Transit said it immediately pulled the train out of service and is investigating. The transit agency told News 4 that a train is not supposed to move if a door is open.
"We strongly encourage customers to immediately report this type of incident to a crew member on board the train," a spokesperson said.
