Critics: LIRR needs to prevent shutdowns better

A dark cloud seems to be hovering over the Long Island Rail Road.

Snow, wind and rain, as well as human error, have contributed to at least 12 major delays or shutdowns since August 2010.

LIRR president Helena Williams preferred to explain most of the agency's breakdowns in two words -- the weather.

"I don't think that anybody should discount that we have been having extraordinary weather events," she said Friday.

But politicians, transit advocates and some commuters say that blaming the weather only goes so far. The railroad needs to plan better for unusual events, they said, react more quickly and communicate better with passengers.

The LIRR is not being realistic about preparing for disastrous, or even routine, weather, said Mark Epstein, chairman of the LIRR Commuter Council, a watchdog group that represents the railroad's 300,000 daily riders.

"We've asked the questions, 'What do you need to function properly?' Whatever it is you need, that's what we need to get," Epstein said. "We will support any expenditures . . . so that the railroad works properly and efficiently."

On Thursday, lightning struck a shed and disabled 13 circuit boards, beginning a chain of events that paralyzed the system for hours.

"I don't think that anybody should discount that we have been having extraordinary weather events," Williams said Friday.

Charlie Vollmer, 25, of Islip, sat on a LIRR train for about two and a half hours Thursday night at Jamaica station before it started heading east on the Babylon line.

"I'd love to ask them is there a backup plan in place and has it been tested," Vollmer said. "They need to have an A, B, C and D plan and practice it."

State Sen. Charles J. Fuschillo Jr. (R-Merrick) said he spoke to LIRR officials Friday and was told they are working with the system designer to find out why it failed and how it can be better protected from future lightning strikes.

"That's a positive step," said Fuschillo, chairman of the Senate Transportation Committee, "but the LIRR still needs to make every effort to improve their communications with passengers."

Williams conceded that not all her agency's problems can be blamed on nature. For instance, Amtrak owns the East River tunnels through which LIRR trains reach Penn Station. Maintenance work in those tunnels caused major disruptions in May and April. Williams also acknowledged that much of the LIRR's infrastructure is old, but pointed out her agency has invested in important upgrades.

"Yes the railroad needs modernization," Williams said, "but it has a very big, wide open, complex infrastructure and it is certainly susceptible to the extraordinary weather events that we've had."

Funding woes have forced the agency to raise fares for three straight years, enact severe service cuts last year, impose several new restrictions and fees, including penalties for ticket refunds, and shorter time windows to use tickets.

"The leadership [of the LIRR] is doing an admirable job with the resources they have, but they need more resources," said state Assemb. Harvey Weisenberg (D-Long Beach), a member of the transportation committee. "The federal government has an obligation and responsibility to provide those resources . . . Our quality of life is impacted by the quality of the railroad."

Some commuters accepted Thursday night's shutdown as a reasonable cost of living on the Island while working in New York City.

James Cassata, 43, of Hicksville, said the Thursday incident has not stopped him from taking the train. "It's a great system, for the size of it," he said.

Others, like Ron Munive, 33, a chef from Bay Shore, expressed more frustration. "I'm frustrated because it's not the first time it has happened," he said. "Now, I think the service got worse. Any strong wind goes by, they have problems with the signals."

LIRR spokesman Joe Calderone said the railroad has contingency plans "for all kinds of emergencies" including snowstorms and hurricanes.

"We also plan for events like Thursday night," said Calderone, who added that the plans may not always be popular, but they put customer safety first.

"As difficult as the commute was, there were no serious injuries and we were able to get the system back up in time for the next day."

The railroad also has other contingency plans, like emergency time tables, and a standing policy to halt service when 10 or more inches of snow accumulates. But despite all those plans and policies, Epstein said, the commuters' faith in the railroad remains tenuous.

Madeleine Tabor, who commutes to Manhattan from Seaford, said she has experienced delays "more often than not, more recently," coping with them by using "the Internet and my wits."

"In fact I predicted it, that thunderstorm," she said. "I knew the tracks were going to be hit with lightning and I would have a problem."

The LIRR plans to hire a consultant to look into protecting the system from lightning, Epstein said, disappointed that it took an event like Thursday's to force that step and echoing the complaint of many riders, that the LIRR does not communicate well when disaster strikes.

"Treat them as customers," Epstein said. "Treat them as adults. And treat them as consumers."

With Alfonso A. Castillo, Anthony M. DeStefano, Keith Herbert, Hugo Kugiya and Olivia Winslow

A look at some major LIRR disruptions

From a tropical storm to a blizzard, Long Island Rail Road riders have had to deal with multiple service interruptions in the past 14 months. They include:

Sept. 29, 2011. Lightning hits a hut controlling signals and switches west of Jamaica. Service is suspended between Manhattan and Jamaica for about 90 minutes before some trains are restored. A second switch malfunctions and leads to a complete system shutdown despite several trains having already left their stations. Riders, some on trains, were stranded for hours until partial service was restored before 10 p.m.

Aug. 28, 2011. Tropical Storm Irene wallops New York and Long Island, and knocked down trees and utility poles across LIRR tracks and cut power to more than 120 railroad crossings. It took five days for full service to be restored to all 11 lines.

Aug. 1, 2011. Lightning strikes at several locations knock out a signaling system for three hours and cause widespread service disruptions, especially along the Babylon branch, which is out of service for the most time. Full service isn't restored for two days.

June 18, 2011. Thunderstorms barrel across Long Island and disrupt power, causing delays of 30 to 60 minutes east of Jamaica on all branches except Port Washington.

May 8, 2011. An Amtrak train derails in an East River tunnel, damaging some 200 railroad ties and sparking delays on the LIRR that last for five days. More than 20 trains were affected, which represents about a quarter of LIRR trains that arrive at Penn Station during the morning rush on the Monday after the derailment. The delays are the third Amtrak-related service disruption for the LIRR since February.

April 18, 2011. As riders head home for the first night of Passover, emergency repairs at a Penn Station tunnel force the cancellation of 21 peak-hour trains.

Feb. 7, 2011. An Amtrak train derails just outside the East River tunnel out of Penn Station. The LIRR is forced to cancel 16 peak evening trains out of 125 it usually runs.

Jan. 12, 2011. A snowstorm causes canceled trains and widespread delays. LIRR cut more than 60 percent of its typical weekday morning service.

Dec. 26, 2010. Track switches and the electrified third rail are buried under snow and force service to be suspended for an entire day, and full service isn't restored for two-and-a-half days following the storm. Hundreds of passengers were stranded at Penn Station.

Oct. 25, 2010. A "low-speed derailment" of a New Jersey Transit train makes fewer tracks available for LIRR trains at Penn Station. LIRR shares tracks with New Jersey Transit and Amtrak at Penn Station. The derailment forces LIRR to cancel 21 of 126 scheduled trains for the evening rush hour.

Sept. 16, 2010. A macroburst tumbles more than 20 trees on the LIRR right of way and cripples the LIRR at the height of the evening rush hour. The storm shut down Penn Station and service was suspended between Manhattan and Jamaica, leaving commuters waiting for hours or scrambling to find alternate ways home.

Aug. 23, 2010. An electrical fire inside the Long Island Rail Road's track switch system at Hall Tower, east of Jamaica, brings the railroad to a virtual halt for a week. The nearly 100-year-old switch was replaced with state-of-the-art computer processors.