(The Associated Press distributed the following story on July 14.)
NEWARK, N.J. — New Jersey Transit passengers felt lingering effects Tuesday from a train derailment that delayed thousands of travelers the day before in the corridor between Newark and New York.
New Jersey Transit modified its schedule for the Tuesday morning rush by canceling 12 trains — seven on the North Jersey Coast line and five on the Northeast corridor — and diverting Midtown direct trains to Hoboken.
The disruption began Monday morning when a commuter train lost a wheel and two cars derailed. Twelve people were treated for minor injuries and released, hospital officials said.
The accident caused extensive delays for New Jersey Transit and Amtrak for much of the day as only one track remained open to handle both north and southbound traffic, said Amtrak spokeswoman Karina VanVeen.
Officials were still working to reopen that track Tuesday morning.
New Jersey Transit’s executive director, George Warrington, said the search for the cause of the accident focused on mechanical failure, but he could not rule out other factors, including human error. A definitive ruling is expected within a few days.
The railroad planned to inspect 230 similar cars for wheel problems.
Secaucus was the scene of two major train derailments in 1996.
Two New Jersey Transit commuter trains collided near a junction in the marshes at the Secaucus-Jersey City border during morning rush hour on Feb. 9, 1996. The wreck killed two engineers and a passenger and injured 162 people. An engineer failed to stop one of the trains at a red signal.
On Nov. 23, 1996, all 12 cars of an eastbound Amtrak passenger train derailed on the Portal Bridge over the Hackensack River, sideswiping a westbound passenger train on an adjacent track. The accident injured 44 people and caused $3.6 million in damage.
Both locomotives of the derailed train, along with four other cars, landed in a gully below. Cracks on a key section of the bridge were blamed.