Metrophile Darius McCollum, who loves borrowing mass transit vehicles about as much as some people love Jeremy Lin, will go on trial next week for stealing a NJ Trailways bus in August 2010. McCollum, who has been arrested 27 times for similar offenses, is facing up to 15 years in prison for grand larceny—but his lawyer will argue that McCollum's obsession with mass transit vehicles is fueled by mental illness, and not greed: “He’s never, ever tried to benefit personally from the theft of a vehicle,” Stephen Jackson said after a hearing in Queens Supreme Court. “This is a glorified unauthorized use of a vehicle case, a misdemeanor.” more ›

The janitor who was caught impersonating a subway supervisor last week isn't just a convicted child rapist—he's also a serial transit thief! Willie Perez, 42, has been arrested a handful of times since 1988 for swiping five buses and several agency cars and impersonating a law enforcement officer on a commuter train. And now Perez has been arrested and locked up in the same prison as the king of mass transit joyrides, Darius McCollum. more ›

Inspired by the exploits of mass transit enthusiast Darius McCollum, who has been arrested 27 times for things like driving a subway (the E train, to be exact), impersonating transit employees, and, most recently, stealing a Trailways bus, the Daily News has been dispatching employees to see how easy it is to steal public transportation vehicles. And in the case of Trailways buses, well, the keys are waiting for you! more ›

Metrophile Darius McCollum, who loves borrowing mass transit vehicles almost as much as everyone on the internet loves cat fashion shows, gave a detailed interview with the Daily News today, in which he says he's stolen 150 buses over the last decade! "That's why I love the city so much— so many trains, so many buses. I don't know what to do with myself," he said. more ›

The lovable Darius McCollum, NYC's #1 mass transit enthusiast, was arraigned today after his 27th arrest yesterday, for stealing a bus. McCollum's last arrest was in 2008, but it turns out he was keeping busy in the between: He stole another bus just 20 days ago! more ›

Darius McCollum, NYC's #1 mass transit enthusiast, was arrested today for stealing a bus. McCollum, 45, was spotted driving the coach northbound on a ramp of the Van Wyck Expressway at 8:50 a.m. and was arrested without incident, police said. Interestingly, according to the Times, he stole a Trailways bus from NJ instead of one from NYC Transit. He was charged with grand larceny and criminal possession of stolen property. more ›

If you thought the folks at SubChat loved subways, they have nothing on Darius McCollum. McCollum has gained infamy as a true lover of trains and mass transit—they are so beloved to him that he's been arrested 26 times for stealing trains or impersonating train employees. Now, after serving his 11th prison sentence, McCollum was seen near Fordham Plaza in the Bronx: "Posters with his image have since blanketed Bronx bus depots, and train operators have received bulletins telling them to be on the lookout for a 'train thief well versed in railroad jargon.'" more ›

The police arrested Darius McCollumn for impersonating a federal employee at Penn Station on Sunday. McCollum's 25 previous arrests were for impersonating a NYC Transit employee--most famously for taking the E train for a 6-stop ride when he was 15 years old. More recently, the 43-year-old has tried to steal a train at the Long Island Rail Road yard in 2004 and tried to enter a restricted area at Columbus Circle wearing a transit worker-like uniform in June. It's believed the 43-year-old suffers from Asperger's; his "weary-sounding" mother told the Daily News that she wasn't surprised he was arrested again. McCollum now lives in North Carolina with her, but he traveled to NYC in spite of her warnings, "He's a lover of New York and can't get over it." more ›

Darius McCollum, the minor cult figure among train buffs and subway enthusiasts, was arrested again this morning after being caught in a restricted area at Columbus Circle . McCollum is such a well known figure, that police recognized him on sight boarding an uptown 1 train at Times Square wearing a blue transit worker-like uniform and gloves that bore a NYC Transit patch. They followed him when got off the train at Columbus Circle and arrested him when he bypassed a barricade at the station. more ›

We had Wesley Autrey, Subway Hero, last month, and this month, we've got... Stuart Tito, Toddler Commuter! The Daily News talks a family whose 22-month-old son took the 7 train all by himself. Yeah, we were amazed too - the 7 was actually running! more ›

At yesterday's NYC Transit public hearing, NYC Transit President Lawrence Reuter was pummeled by complaints from disgruntled riders. And this was after a long meeting with a skeptical City Council board about the NYC Transit performance. The NY Times says that after Reuter said, "The system is actually safer than it ever has been," he was met with boos plus one person's exclamation of "Oh, please." Hee hee. Reuter wasn't that thrilled with the reception, but what can he expect when he's revealing that more holes have been found in the subway system, laying blame on crews in 1993. Whatever - it's been 12 years, it's still crap! Anyway, Reuter has been an easy target ever since the "It'll take 3-5 years to fix the A and C lines" pronouncement; Gothamist hopes that being on the hot seat will shape up service more. more ›

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Read a Harper's article about McCollum. * And a metrophile "is a person who has as a hobby the study of metro (subway, underground) systems," according to UsefulReference.com. Hmm, McCollum is certainly a Type-A metrophile. Gothamist is happy to read nycsubway.org and leave the conducting of trains to the professionals. more ›

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