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October 10, 2018
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LIRR Successfully Replaces 129-Year-Old Buckram Road Bridge in Locust ValleyProject, Completed on Time, Will Improve Safety and Reduce Truck Strikes to Bridge, Lessen Related Train Delays
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Long Island Rail Road crews on Tuesday morning put the finishing touches on the Buckram Road Bridge replacement in Locust Valley, marking another successful infrastructure initiative toward the modernization of the rail system. The work on this bridge, which carries the railroad’s Oyster Bay Branch over Buckram Road/Oyster Bay Road between the Locust Valley and Oyster Bay stations, began on Friday night, October 5, and finished in the morning hours on Tuesday, October 9, 2018. It included the removal of the old bridge and installation of the new bridge, which was built off site.
View time lapse footage of the replacement here. Previously, the lower clearance on the bridge, built in 1889 at 10-feet-1-inch high, made it susceptible to getting hit by over-height vehicles. In 2017 alone, it was struck five times, resulting in delays to train service. Now, nearly four feet higher at 14 feet and adhering to state Department of Transportation design standards, this project will improve train service by reducing the chances of over-height trucks striking the bridge, and enhance public safety by improving roadway sight-lines.
"Anytime we can complete a project that reduces delays, it's a win for our customers and a win for the railroad," LIRR President Phillip Eng said. "Projects like these, done in a tight time frame with minimal intrusion and disruption to our customers and to the surrounding communities, are indicative of the new way we are getting important infrastructure projects done at the Long Island Rail Road. I want to thank the men and women who worked diligently over the weekend to complete this project on time, to our customers who adapted to our service changes, as well as the surrounding community for their patience while we finished this important infrastructure initiative."
Why do bridge strikes cause train delays?
Each time one of our bridges is struck by a vehicle, speed restrictions are put on trains while a team of specialized LIRR personnel are dispatched to the scene to inspect the bridge to ensure its continued safety. Only when a bridge is determined to be safe for full-speed train travel is the restriction lifted; in the interim, the result is cascading delays that can affect train service across the immediate branch and sometimes other branches as well.
Benefits Seen to Raising Bridge Heights
Already, the LIRR is seeing benefits with these types of bridge replacements. Last October, the LIRR replaced the Post Avenue Bridge in Westbury over a one-weekend period. The old bridge -- that hovered over Post Avenue at 11 feet 10 inches -- had been struck by trucks between five and nine times per year in each of the past six years. Since its replacement, the bridge has not been struck -- and, therefore, no resulting delays have occurred.
Upcoming Bridge Replacement Projects
In an ongoing effort to address this issue and reduce these types of delays, the LIRR is proactively replacing an additional eight strike-prone bridges across our system, including:
These projects are part of an unprecedented system-wide investment by Governor Andrew M. Cuomo that is allowing the LIRR to undergo a $6.6 billion modernization to increase reliability, expand capacity, upgrade infrastructure and improve the customer experience. Learn more about 100+ projects associated with the investment at aModernLI.com. For more information specifically about the Buckram Road Bridge replacement project, please click on this link: http://www.amodernli.com/project/buckram-road-bridge-replacement/
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