A car got too close to a cable car near Union Square this afternoon, hitting a young rider with its side mirror, Muni spokesman Paul Rose said.

The cable car was in the intersection at Powell and Sutter streets at 4 p.m. when the automobile “veered into the cable car, and the side mirror made contact with an 11-year-old boy,” said spokesman Paul Rose. He said the boy was hit in the torso and treated at the scene.

The car also stopped, Rose said. His agency is conducting an investigation with the Police Department into the cause of the crash.

The accident disrupted cable car service on that line for a half-hour, according to Rose.

aburack@sfexaminer.com