Gov. Cuomo calls for subway power upgrades amid startling statistics

NEW YORK (WABC) -- Amid startling statistics surrounding power problems in New York City's subway system, the governor is ordering a power upgrade.

There have been more than 32,000 subway delays and disruptions because of power issues in the last year.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D-NY) took the media on a tour of the infrastructure three stories below ground Wednesday. It basically took the group 60 years in to the past, where the trains are controlled by rows of vacuum tubes from the 1950s.

The power supply is so fragile that the slightest change in voltage sends the signals to red. When that happens, the trains come to a halt.

The issues of an aging system have compounded over time. More riders have been delayed - and delayed more often - than at any time in the recent history of the transit system.

The state's Public Service Commission blames many of those delays on the power supply.

So now, the governor and Con Edison are investing millions to upgrade it.