Thief steals NYC subway's main control stick in Brooklyn

"The train was parked just south of the 86th St. station in Fort Hamilton Monday afternoon when a transit worker noticed the lead car was missing the so-called "master controller," sources told the Daily News. A master controller - which on an R160 subway car, like those on an R train, consists of a T-shaped handle on the train operator's right-hand side - controls a subway's acceleration and braking."

"The train was parked on what's called a "layup track" between the 86th St. and 95th St. stations along the Fourth Ave. line - in a section of tracks meant for storing trains overnight or in between rush hours, or for storing damaged subways before they can be moved back to a train yard for repair. The theft was discovered shortly before 5 p.m. Monday, though it was not immediately clear when it happened. Sources told The News that police were notified shortly afterward."

"The theft occurred along a stretch of southern Brooklyn layup track that's become a hot spot for subway vandals. In May, the same layup track was the site of a joyride broadcast on social media, in which two young transit trespassers threw an R train into reverse going 20 mph. Neither the NYPD nor the MTA responded to requests for comment."

The master controller, a T-shaped handle on the operator's right used to control acceleration and braking on R160 cars, was removed from the lead car of an R train parked just south of 86th St. station in Fort Hamilton. A photograph shows an empty space with wiring protruding into the cab. The control cab at the opposite end remained intact. The train was stored on a layup track between 86th and 95th St. that holds trains between rush hours or before yard transfer. The theft was discovered shortly before 5 p.m.; police were notified and the train later moved to Jamaica Yard for repairs. The layup track has been a vandalism hot spot, including a May joyride in which two trespassers reversed an R train at 20 mph. Neither the NYPD nor the MTA provided comment.

Read at New York Daily News