MTA slapped with violation for 50-gallon sewage leak at its Bronx bus depot

Yahoo

01-04-2025

Dozens of gallons of raw sewage from an MTA bus depot in the Bronx have flowed into the Eastchester Bay, earning the transit agency a violation from state environmental authorities, the Daily News has learned.
The putrid problem is the result of a clogged sewage line and broken sewage pumps at the Gun Hill Bus Depot in Baychester that have caused the facility's waste system to get badly backed up, according to sources and documents reviewed by The News — leaving workers to use portable toilets and teams at a nearby Little League Baseball field to smell the spilled muck.
During a recent visit to the site of the leak — a half-block stretch of Bruner Ave. that abuts onto the depot's parking lot as well as several MTA-owned Little League Baseball fields — The News observed several large puddles and a rank sewage smell.
The foul situation drew the attention of state and city regulators last month when a clogged sewage line coming from the transit facility caused an overflow that dumped into the nearby storm drain system, emptying out into the Eastchester Bay, according to a state Department of Environmental Conservation violation issued to the MTA last week and reviewed by The News. The violation says some 50 gallons of raw sewage in total pumped into the water.
'The overflow originated from an eight-inch Transit Authority sanitary manhole, clogged by rags and grease,' the violation notice reads. The sewage then 'entered a nearby stormwater catch basin leading to the bay,' it continues.
A source with knowledge of the Gun Hill facility said the sewer sorrows date back more than a year, when the pumps tasked with moving human waste out of the facility's ejector pit and into the city's larger sewage network broke down in February 2024.
An MTA spokesperson confirmed Tuesday that crews were continuing to work on repairs to the pumps and sewer pipes, and that water has been shut off to the facility and portable toilets have been brought to the site.
'The MTA continues to work with its vendors to address the issues at the Gun Hill Bus Depot,' MTA spokeswoman Kayla Shults said. 'There is no impact to bus operations.'
A spokesman for the state DEC said the MTA had begun using vacuum trucks to bypass the broken pipes and clear out the sewage still in the system — which a transit source estimated amounted to thousands of gallons of human waste.
'Currently, the MTA is using vacuum trucks to transport the sewage from the [depot] buildings to the New York City sewer to eliminate the possibility of any additional sewage bypassing,' DEC spokesman John Salka wrote in a statement on Tuesday.
Salka added the MTA 'is exploring options for continued cleanup operations.'
A wide trench could be seen along the edge of the property Monday, following the fence that separates the depot's parking lot from the adjacent baseball fields. Sources said MTA crews were working on repairs to the clogged sewage line there, as well as at another covered hole directly next to the entrance of the baseball field.
An official with Astor Little League, which uses the fields, told a reporter that any leak had not affected the league or its plans to open its baseball season this month.
But while the trench appeared dry when seen by The News on Monday, a sour whiff of sewage could still be detected from behind home plate of the closest baseball field.
Gun Hill Depot, which sits alongside Interstate 95, is no stranger to toxic concerns — it was built in 1989 on the site of an old dump over community opposition to the plan.
Asked about the spill, City Council member Kevin Riley (D-Bronx) said the MTA briefed him on it two weeks ago after a constituent brought it to his attention.
'The sewage is kind of all over the place,' he said.
Riley said he was concerned the slop could muck up the nearby Little League field with the spring season coming up.
'We don't want this to be an issue for [the league], so we're going to be pushing the MTA to expedite to resolve this issue,' he said.