Previously: N Judah Back In Service, But Delays Expected-And What About That Copper Wire Thing?
The theft of copper cable from the Sunset Tunnel affected the commutes of thousands of San Francisco Municipal Railway customers this morning, transit officials said.
A problem was first reported in the tunnel shortly after 5 a.m. Muni initially single-tracked N-Judah trains through the tunnel, but then shut it down for repairs shortly after 7:30 a.m. The tunnel reopened just after 10:30 a.m.
John Haley, the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency’s director of transit operations, said commuters who use the N-Judah line, as well as others who use the Muni Metro Subway, “were inconvenienced by a vicious act of vandalism and theft.” More than 30 feet of copper cable was stolen from the tunnel’s western end.
In a prepared statement, Haley said, “The target of the theft was the copper cable that serves as the conduit for the negative charge of the light rail system’s power supply.”
The SFMTA has provided video footage of the area where the theft occurred to police, and are boosting security in four other locations of the Muni system where the cable is used.
During this morning’s commute, trains were switched back at Carl Street and Hillway Avenue, and outbound trains at Church Street and Duboce Avenue.
Bus shuttles also supplemented service along the N-Judah line.
