BELMONT (WBZ-AM) -- An MBTA Commuter Rail train has broken down on the Fitchburg Line near Waverly Station in Belmont, causing extensive delays.
"At approximately 8 a.m. train 404 on the Fitchburg line was involved in an upright derailment near Waltham," a statement from Keolis, the company that operates the Commuter Rail, read. "No injuries have been reported, and we are working to minimize disruption to the passengers on the train and enable them to complete their travel."
There were about 800 passengers on board.
Dierdre Cummings, a comsumer advocate for MassPIRG who happened to be a passenger on the train, told WBZ NewsRadio what happened.
"The train was packed and standing-room only," she said. "Two thirds of the way in, it sounded like we ran over some metal or rocks, loud noises, banging. The train stopped, and then we were told that the back axle was broken."
MBTA officials said another train was headed that way for passengers to transfer onto, though some passengers opted to walk the quarter-mile Waverly Station rather than wait for that train. Jim from Groton told WBZ NewsRadio's Kendall Buhl he was one of those passengers. He had been at Waverly Station for about an hour when the packed commuter train that had picked up those who were on his derailed train roared past.
"They told us within ten minutes that the train was not gonna go any further, and then it took another 20 minutes for them to figure out that they were gonna be sending a rescue train, which I think was that one that just passed us," he said.
Other commuters trying to meet their trains in Belmont said they've had waits of 45 minutes or more.
The cause of the axle break was not yet known.
WBZ NewsRadio's Kendall Buhl (@KBuhlWBZ) reports