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$2.6 billion LIRR upgrade will connect Brooklyn workers to Long Island jobs

Two-way service for the first time

December 14, 2017 By Mary Frost Brooklyn Daily Eagle

The MTA board on Wednesday approved a $2.6 billion contract to complete the design and construction of a 9.8-mile-long third track between Floral Park and Hicksville on Long Island. This will permit two-way rush hour traffic, allowing Brooklyn and Queens residents to commute to Long Island for jobs. Map courtesy of the Regional Plan Association

The MTA board on Wednesday approved a $2.6 billion contract to complete the design and construction of a 9.8-mile-long third track between Floral Park and Hicksville on Long Island. This will permit two-way rush hour traffic, allowing Brooklyn and Queens residents to commute to Long Island for jobs. Map courtesy of the Regional Plan Association

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Brooklyn residents will have new access to employment on Long Island after the completion of $2.6-billion rail project known as the Long Island Rail Road Expansion Project.

The MTA board on Wednesday approved a contract with a consortium called 3rd Track Constructors (3TC) to complete the design and construction of a 9.8-mile-long third track between Floral Park and Hicksville on Long Island.

With a third track, all-day, two-directional service on LIRR’s Main Line will become a reality for commuters. Currently, during the morning and evening rush hours, only a very limited number of trains run in the “opposite-flow” direction (from NYC to Long Island in the morning, and from Long Island to NYC in the evening). This makes it difficult for those living in Brooklyn or Queens to get to jobs on Long Island.

According to MTA, after the third track is complete, Brooklyn and Queens residents will be able to connect with opportunities in Nassau and Suffolk Counties the same way that Bronx residents currently travel to jobs via Metro-North, benefitting the entire metropolitan region’s economy.

Brooklyn residents have access to LIRR via Atlantic Terminal, Nostrand Avenue and East New York stops. There are numerous stops in Queens.

The nonprofit advisory group Regional Plan Association (RPA) estimated in 2013 that the third track would be able to operate 14-15 trains per hour, providing capacity for 12-13 trains in the non-peak direction and two additional trains in the peak direction.

“Upon its completion, this modernization initiative will provide faster commuting with a more reliable network, and will allow us to keep the railroad in a state-of-good-repair,” MTA Chairman Joseph Lhota said in a statement.

According to RPA, with the limited reverse service that currently exists, few residents of New York City consider taking the train to get to jobs in Mineola, Hicksville, Farmingdale or other locations in eastern Nassau and Suffolk County. The third track would give these residents access and help Long Island businesses grow and hire more workers.

Two-way service would open the eastbound morning commute to more than a million residents living west of major Long Island towns and cities, RPA says. In 2013, at least 350,000 people lived within a 60-minute eastbound LIRR morning commute to Mineola and 226,000 within 60 minutes of Hicksville, for example. Other numbers include: Westbury – 283,000; Farmingdale – 175,000; Deer Park – 78,000; Ronkonkoma – 20,000.

The enlarged employee pool will serve to increase the attractiveness of Long Island to prospective employers, MTA says.

The project is part of Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s comprehensive plan to improve transit and transportation throughout the region. Other improvements, including East Side Access, Double Track and Jamaica Capacity Improvement Project lay the foundation “for a resurgence of the region’s economic growth,” MTA said in a release.

Right of way, safety

Previous efforts on a third track proposal foundered in 2008 after Long Island residents became concerned that the project would impinge on their residential properties. In the approved contract, the use of retaining walls will allow the third track to be placed in the existing LIRR right-of-way, eliminating the need for residential property takings, MTA said.

The plan also addresses safety risks that currently exist at street-level grade crossings. From 2013 to 2016, there were 127 accidents on the Main Line, causing 4,354 late or canceled trains. As part of the project, seven grade crossings along the 9.8-mile corridor will be completely eliminated.

Design-build

The project is using the “design-build” form of contracting, in which a single firm or consortium is responsible for both the design and construction of a project. Design-build puts competitive pressure on bidders to harness innovative methods to complete the project faster and cheaper.

Several firms joined together to form 3TC, including Dragados USA, Inc., John P. Picone Inc., CCA Civil, Inc. and Halmar International LLC, with Stantec as the design professional, as well as Cameron Engineering.

Separately, MTA Capital Construction on Wednesday awarded a contract to Arup – Jacobs Joint Venture for $99.996 million for project management consulting services on the project.

The total project is expected to start in late 2018 and be completed by late 2022.

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