Body found on NYC subway tracks; NYPD believes homeless man in tunnel struck by a passing train

A man believed to be homeless was found dead on the tracks inside a Manhattan subway tunnel Friday morning, cops and transit officials said.

The man’s body was first found north of the Canal St. station on the Lexington Ave. line by the operator of an uptown No. 5 train at 9:19 a.m., MTA officials said.

The operator stopped short of the corpse. Authorities later determined the victim was likely struck by a previous train on the tracks.

Police said the man was in his 40s. It was not immediately clear how or when entered the tunnel.

The MTA halted express service on the Nos. 4 and 5 lines in both directions after the man’s body was found.

About 350 passengers were aboard the No. 5 train that stopped short of the body. Transit crews dispatched a second train to retrieve those straphangers brought them back to the Brooklyn Bridge-City Hall station at 10:02 a.m., officials said.

The man’s body was later loaded onto the stopped No. 5 train and taken to the Union Square-14th St. station, said an MTA source who reviewed a report from the incident.

The death sparked more than two hours of rush hour delays on the Nos. 4, 5 and 6 lines, which carry tens of thousands of commuters every weekday morning.

MTA officials have since last year looked into new ways to address a growing number of unauthorized people on city subway tracks. That effort includes MTA officials have since last year looked into new ways to address a growing number of unauthorized people on city subway tracks.

Mayor Adams earlier this year also launched a campaign to clear homeless people out of the city’s subway stations and tunnels.