MTA Plans On Shutting Down During Hurricane Irene

New York officials intend to shut down the city’s mass transit system this weekend given the predicted strength of Hurricane Irene, said Jay Walder, chairman of New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority.

Walder said he would order the suspension of subway and bus services throughout the city if sustained winds hit 39 miles per hour (63 kilometers per hour). He said he expects to begin shutting down the system on Saturday afternoon to give workers an opportunity to shelter trains and buses safely. Service may not resume until after rush hour Monday, Walder said.

The subways typically carry about 5.1 million riders on a weekday, the MTA says on its website. If the suspension goes into effect on the 107-year-old subway system, it would be the first such shutdown in his memory, the MTA chairman said. A shutdown of the mass transit system will take at least eight hours, he said.

“We cannot guarantee the safety at 39 miles per hour,” Walder said during a City Hall news conference. “At some point Saturday mass transit is not going to be an option.”