We were stranded in the tunnel for maybe 20 minutes. The train was PACKED to capacity this morning. The air conditioning and lights shut off because the power supply was cut. Through the darkness, I could see a light above every other door. I was fortunate to be seated at the front of the first car.
I kept thinking about the people in the middle and the back cars who probably did not know exactly what was happening because the announcements were scarce and kept breaking up. From where I was sitting, I could hear the operator speaking on the telephone. Hearing that kept me from panicking because I knew what was going on. He was not happy because apparently we got screwed over. I could hear him telling the person on the other end of the phone that they should have let him reverse to Bloor Station before cutting out the power.
This ordeal felt scary because the section of tunnel between Union and Bloor is the narrowest in the entire system. It is the original section from the 1950s and does not have proper ventilation. The tunnels on the newer Sheppard line are wide and spacious. There are platform edges along the entire tunnel so that people could walk safely. There are also more lights and good ventilation. The old Yonge line had no such feature in its original section between Bloor and Union stations.
It started to get hot on the train. People were taking off their shirts and jackets. A man knocked on the operator’s cab door and asked, “Can we get some air in here?” The driver opened his door and explained that there was no power on the train. He had a small fan in his car and left the door open so that we can get a little air. He also opened his window.
They claimed there was an unauthorized person on the tracks at Wellesley Station. I could hear them telling the operator that supervisors were walking the tracks from Bloor towards Wellesley. I suppose that was in order to catch the person. I could hear them walking in the tunnel. I heard a voice yell, “careful, don’t fall there.” I saw a supervisor approach the front of our train and start speaking with the operator. He then slowly continued his way towards Wellesley. Another supervisor appeared and did the same. I quietly asked, “why don’t they walk faster?”
The power was finally restored and were cleared to go. We entered Wellesley Station to see the platform packed with people. The operator said, “They let out the train that was ahead of us.” There was no way those people could fit onto our train. There was a supervisor on the platform. I overheard the operator say to him, “but I thought you said there was a person on track level?” Right there I knew that they had lied to him. I have no idea what happened but it seems to me that nobody was on the tracks.
We pulled into College Station and shortly after the guard warned people to stay clear of the doors, the train did not move. The doors opened again and the operator got out of his cab real fast and I heard him say, “I’m gonna have to check on door number …” as he took off. I gave up at that point and left the train. As I approached the exit, they gave the all-clear but I kept walking. I was not going back into that mess.
This post was originally written September 22, 2011 by Charles Dunlevy