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LIRR Ready for Winter Storm Grayson with Additional Staff, Equipment


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#1 CNJRoss

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Posted 04 January 2018 - 01:22 AM

MTA LIRR news:

 
Long Island Rail Road Ready for Winter Storm with Additional Staff, Equipment
January 03rd, 2018
lirr_7.jpg?itok=e7QhavYv

 

The Long Island Rail Road is preparing its rails and stations as the New York metropolitan area braces for its first winter storm of 2018. 

 

The LIRR anticipates running normal service on Thursday, January 4, as conditions warrant. As safety is a top priority of the LIRR, staff will monitor the storm as it progresses and make any adjustments necessary. 

 

The coastal system is expected to bring 7 to 12 inches of snow to Long Island over the next 5 days, primarily in Suffolk County. The system will also create blizzard conditions that could lead to blowing snow and whiteouts on roadways. 

 

Low pressure systems to the north and moving up the Atlantic coast will bring snow across all of New York State late Wednesday through the weekend. A winter storm warning has been issued for Suffolk County from 1 a.m. Thursday through 1 a.m. Friday. Winter storm watches have been issued for New York City and Nassau County from 1 a.m. Thursday to 11 p.m. Thursday. 

 

In the Long Island Region, Suffolk County is expected to see the highest accumulations from the coastal system with anywhere from 7 to 12 inches over the next 5 days with Nassau county as well as New York City forecast to receive from 3 to 6 inches of snow, with a potential for 6 inches or more, late tonight through Thursday. The balance of the State can expect generally from 3 to 8 inches through the weekend. 

 

The LIRR is taking preventative measures to deal with snow accumulation, including the activation of equipment heaters and deployment of de-icing equipment. Switch heaters will be used to keep rail switches moving freely so trains can be routed from one track to another. Anti-freeze trains also will operate as needed to help prevent icing on the third rail and ensure that electric trains can draw power properly. 

 

Many of LIRR’s electric trains are outfitted with special scraper shoes to help reduce icing on the third rail, allowing trains to maintain contact with the third rail.  The third rail provides power for heat, lights and propulsion. Crews will pre-salt station platforms. As snowfall accumulates, LIRR employees will clear platforms of snow/ice. Station waiting rooms have remained open to the public around the clock due to the cold and will remain available to the riding public until Monday, January 8, when regular station waiting room hours will resume. 

 

The LIRR has at the ready several different types of equipment during storms to ensure safe travel and operations, including 1 million pounds of de-icer, 25 cubic yards of sand, three cold-air snow blowers/throwers, four de-icer trains, nine rail-bound jet blowers/snow melters, 12,000 third-rail heaters/melters, 108 track switch heaters/snow melters, two rail-bound snow blowers/broom throwers, one rail-bound spreader, and seven mountable snow plows/salt spreaders. The LIRR also has two excavators, two forklifts, 31 loaders, 42 barricades, and 29 work vehicles/trucks to assist in weather-related conditions. 

 

Customers are advised to allow extra time to get to the station and use caution when navigating stairways and platforms and when boarding and exiting trains in case of slippery conditions. Customers can sign up for the LIRR's Customer E-Alert/Text Message service for updates about service changes related to the storm at: http://mymtaalerts.com/LoginC.aspx. Customers can also check the MTA/LIRR website for service advisories at www.mta.info/lirr.

 

 






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