Teen train enthusiasts are suspected in a twin set of incidents — moving a pair of trains two stations in the wrong direction along the Queens Boulevard Line early Sunday, the Daily News has learned.
The first set of R160 train cars parked along the Jamaica-bound express track overnight near the 67th Avenue station in Forest Hills began moving without authorization around 1 a.m. Sunday, sources told The News.
The train moved two stations in the opposite direction, coming to a stop near the Woodhaven Boulevard Station.
Like many other outer-borough express tracks during the late-night hours, the tracks were not in passenger service at the time, with all trains running local. Still, MTA’s rail control center warned any personnel in the area about the errant subway, a source told The News.
According to one source, the train — equipped with automated systems allowing modern signals to control its speed — had been switched to “bypass mode,” removing those fail-safes. It was not immediately apparent how fast the train had been going.
Within fifteen minutes of the train’s backward trip, an MTA supervisor was on scene to inspect it. No trespassers were found on board. Transit workers also checked several other trains parked near the 67th Ave Station, and found them to be secure, sources said.
Police reportedly notified the MTA that the trespassers were believed to be two youths dressed all in black, with walkie-talkies and subway keys.
The purloined train was powered up and taken to a nearby yard for inspection.
Around 5 a.m., subway dispatchers noticed yet another set of R160 train cars was moving without permission — again in the wrong direction on the Jamaica-bound express track from 67th Ave. to Woodhaven Boulevard.
Though a passing train operator reported seeing people walking from the stolen train on the north-bound platform, no one was aboard by the time it was searched.
“This reckless and dangerous behavior is unacceptable,” William Amarosa, vice president of subways for New York City Transit, told The News. “We’re continuing to implement technologies and enhance security protocols throughout the system that prevent unauthorized train movements and have confidence that the NYPD will bring those responsible to justice.”
The NYPD said no arrest has been made, and the investigation remains ongoing.
Trespassing young transit buffs taking control of parked trains has been an ongoing issue for the MTA.
Last month, a group of teens was suspected of breaking into a J train and getting it tangled in a switch track, causing over an hour of delays in lower Manhattan.
In December, a transit thief stole the control stick out of an R train while it was parked under southern Brooklyn.
A young, repeat train-thief recklessly threw a train in reverse on the same section of track during a joyride months earlier.
In February of 2025, a 15-year-old boy was arrested after he came to school with a backpack full of stolen MTA gear, including multiple transit walkie-talkies and train keys.
That boy had been suspected as part of the teenage crew that broke into a pair of trains a month before, running them at speeds up to 30 mph along a section of express track beneath Brooklyn.