LIRR to reduce service Friday and Monday at Mineola for Third Track work

As the Long Island Rail Road closes in on completion of the next section of the long-awaited new Third Track, customers are being advised of "significantly" reduced service both Friday and Monday at Mineola, the railroad said Wednesday.

Eastbound trains won't stop at Mineola between 5-10 a.m. on those days — and afternoon train service will be reduced in both directions.

The railroad is advising customers headed east on Friday and Monday to remain on the train to Hicksville, where bus service will be in place for transit back to Mineola.

Officials also have suggested customers use the Hempstead Branch as an alternative.

Some trains will add stops at Westbury, the railroad said.

The latest service issues and advisories come little more than a week after the first section of Third Track made its debut Aug. 15. It was part of a $2.6 billion improvement and modernization project now in its fourth year of construction and followed about 70 years of planning and debate.

The first section of new Third Track stretches from Queens Village to Merillon Avenue in Garden City. The second section, due to make its debut Monday, extends to Carle Place.

New portions will stretch from Floral Park to Hicksville and more will be added until the entire 9.8-mile new track is operational, officials said.

MTA officials said the Third Track could revolutionize transportation on Long Island by boosting capacity 50% along a bottleneck in the system. The track will allow the LIRR to run more trains, including in the opposite direction during rush hour to serve reverse commuters who work on Long Island, and also more quickly recover from unexpected service disruptions. 

Metropolitan Transportation Authority officials have said the project won’t reach “substantial completion” until April, because of "punch-list items" left to be done, including landscaping work and station improvements at some locations. The MTA is the LIRR's parent organization.

Also Wednesday, the MTA announced in a release that a newly rebuilt east end overpass at Huntington Station had opened, one of three enclosed overpasses at the station. The overpass has glass panel walls, brighter lighting and security cameras, the MTA said. The overpass had closed Sept. 7, 2020 and meant eastbound customers had to board and leave trains through one of the last six or eight cars. Riders can now board or exit from any car, the MTA said.
With Alfonso A. Castillo

By John Valenti

john.valenti@newsday.com

John Valenti, a reporter at Newsday since 1981, has been honored nationally by the Associated Press and Society of the Silurians for investigative, enterprise and breaking news reporting, as well as column writing, and is the author of “Swee'pea,” a book about former New York playground basketball star Lloyd Daniels. Valenti is featured in the Emmy Award-winning ESPN 30-for-30 film “Big Shot.”