The Atlantic Ocean: Giant Transit Trash Can

Photo by Stephen Mallon via Fast Company

Ever wonder what happens when old subway cars die? Many of New York’s end up in a watery grave.

Unbelievably, for more than 10 years the New York Metropolitan Transit Authority has been dumping its old cars into the Atlantic Ocean to create artificial reefs for ocean life. Some sit off the coast of Delaware. New Jersey, according to an Aug. 22, 2001, New York Times article, rejected the idea because of concerns about asbestos within the walls of the cars.

Photographer Stephen Mallon spent more two years taking some pretty spectacular photos of the subway car dumping, like the one above. You can see more here.

And take a moment to imagine BART cars being dumped into the Bay …