Snakes on a train startle New York subway passengers

It was an unusual sight for commuters on a New York subway on Monday when two pythons slithered out of a man's backpack.

Eric Hertzog, a radio producer, posted on his Instagram account about the seemingly carefree man "just letting his snake chill like it's nothing" about 11pm when he hopped on the train at Canal Street in Lower Manhattan.

One of the large snakes, believed to be about six feet long, was wrapped around his legs while the other smaller snake dangled from a pole.

"I just thought to myself, is that a snake hanging on the train?" Mr Hertzog told the New York Post.

When one commuter went to sit down next to the snake man, he apparently warned them off.

"Then that guy ran to the other side of the subway car…It was some good entertainment on the way home from work," Mr Hertzog said.

A Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) spokesperson told the New York Post the man may have violated the transit rules of conduct or the "Samuel L Jackson rule" referring to the 2006 film Snakes on a Plane.