NEW YORK — Governor Andrew Cuomo of New York declared a state of emergency for New York City’s subway system Thursday and said he would sign an executive order to accelerate efforts to improve service, including undertaking badly needed repairs and obtaining new cars and equipment.

Cuomo said that the dismal performance of the system was no longer acceptable, and that he had ordered Joseph J. ­Lhota, the new chairman of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, to provide a reorganization plan for the agency within 30 days.

Lhota must also review the agency’s capital plan within 60 days, the governor added. Cuomo pledged to direct an addition $1 billion for capital improvements.

Cuomo’s comments came two days after a subway train derailed in northern Manhattan, injuring about three dozen people and raising concerns among commuters that the system had become not only unreliable, but also unsafe.

The governor said the executive order would make it easier for the transit agency to focus on its most urgent needs.

“It will no longer be a tortured exercise to do business with the MTA,’’ Cuomo said at a meeting in Manhattan where entrepreneurs were gathered for a competition unveiled by the governor for ideas on how the fix the problems plaguing the subway.

“We need new ideas,’’ the governor said. “Delivered faster.’’

NEW YORK TIMES