Mass Transit Largely Back On Track Following Blizzard
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) - Mass transit across the Tri-State Area is getting back to normal.
Long Island Rail Road restored weekend service on its Far Rockaway, Long Beach, Hempstead and Oyster Bay branches in addition to the LIRR's four busiest branches - Ronkonkoma, Huntington, Babylon and Port Washington.
Ten LIRR trains will be canceled Monday morning out of the normal 143 rush hour trains. LIRR spokesman Joe Calderone told WCBS 880 that other cancellations are possible.
"We may have some additional delays and cancellations, because we are still digging out," Calderone said. "Parts of Suffolk got 3 feet, 30 inches of snow, so many of our trains and yards and switches were under significant amounts of snow."
Crews have been out clearing the tracks and the equipment all weekend, Calderone said.
Trains will not run east of Speonk and East Ronkonkoma, as the LIRR is focusing on lines that carry more people, Calderone said.
Calderone also warned that ice on the third rail remains an issue, and parking lots at LIRR stations may not be fully plowed.
Metro-North Railroad's Hudson and Harlem lines are operating regular Sunday service. On the New Haven line, normal Sunday service is running between Stamford and Grand Central Terminal, but remained suspended between Stamford and hard-hit New Haven.
On the Danbury Branch, four of the five regular trains will not operate – including the 6:18 a.m. departure from Danbury.
Several minor changes will also be in place between Stamford and New York. The 6:11 a.m. train from Stamford has been canceled, and customers who usually catch the 7:35 a.m. train from Port Chester must instead take the local train that leaves Stamford at 6:59 a.m.
Some trains that normally stop at Greenwich are not running Monday.
The Haverstraw and Newburgh ferries and the Hudson Rail Link buses are running as usual.
New York City subway service is operating with scattered delays. Weekend subway work has been called off, and service is operating on a normal Sunday schedule.
Some subway lines have been operating on the local tracks, while trains are stored underground so yards can be cleared of snow, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority said.
On Monday morning, all service was expected to be fully back to normal, with subway lines that had been running local back to regular express service. Bus routes that had been running with shorter buses will return to the use of longer, articulated buses.
Access-A-Ride paratransit service will also be back to normal, the MTA said.
All MTA bridges and tunnels are open, but officials urge drivers to give themselves extra travel time due to slick conditions.
MORE: Traffic and Transit | NJ TRANSIT | MTA | Amtrak
On NJ TRANSIT, all bus service has been restored but delays and detours are possible.
As of noon, NJ TRANSIT rail service on the Morris & Essex and the Montclair-Boonton lines will be restored. This includes Midtown Direct service along the Morristown Line.
Ticket cross-honoring remains in effect systemwide for NJ TRANSIT.
Amtrak will also resume expanded, but still limited, service on the Northeast Corridor Line between New York and Boston – including the addition of the Acela Express service. The Springfield Shuttle between New Haven, Conn., and Springfield, Mass., will also be in operation on a limited basis.
Additionally, limited Amtrak service between New York and Boston resumed Sunday.
