Westbound Service Restored on One of Two Main Line Tracks; 
Crews Rerailing Two Derailed Cars and Repairing Significant Track Damage; 
Railroad Advises Customers to Travel Via Other Branches If Possible

MTA Long Island Rail Road on Wednesday morning announced that one of two tracks through Westbury has been reopened for service following a motor vehicle and train collision Tuesday evening, allowing limited service to resume in time for the Wednesday morning rush hour on the Port Jefferson Branch and the Ronkonkoma Branch. Customers are advised that the railroad will cancel approximately 13 westbound trains and eight eastbound trains on those branches, and the remaining trains that do operate will operate with heavy delays through Westbury.

As a result of the train cancellations and anticipated delays and crowding, the LIRR strongly advises customers to travel on alternate branches if possible, including the Babylon, Montauk, Oyster Bay and Hempstead Branches.

LIRR crews continue to work around the clock at Westbury to re-rail two railcars that derailed as a result of the collision. At the same time, maintenance personnel are assessing and repairing significant damage to tracks. Approximately 200 feet of third rail and running rails of one of the two tracks through this area was damaged by the collision and needs repair before train service can resume on the affected track. The Westbury Station platform was also damaged, and crews are assessing what impact that damage may have to train service.

The LIRR anticipates that mid-day service on the Port Jefferson Branch and Ronkonkoma Branch will be suspended to allow crews access to re-rail the derailed train cars. Cancellations and delays on the two branches are expected to continue for the Wednesday evening rush hour. Details will be provided as soon as possible.

The LIRR advises customers to pay extra attention to real-time service alerts made available via email, text message, website and app updates. (Details on how to access these services from any smartphone are below.)

The LIRR anticipates that these morning rush westbound trains will most likely be cancelled:

Port Jefferson Branch

The 5:59 a.m. train from Port Jefferson due Long Island City at 7:51 a.m.

The 6:00 a.m. train from Farmingdale due Penn at 6:50 a.m.

The 6:25 a.m. train from Hicksville due Penn at 7:11 a.m.

The 6:38 a.m. train from Huntington due Atlantic Terminal at 7:36 a.m.

The 6:59 a.m. train from Westbury due Penn at 7:43 a.m.

The 7:12 a.m. train from Huntington due Penn at 8:10 a.m.

The 7:18 a.m. train from Westbury due Penn at 8:02 a.m.

The 8:36 a.m. train from Port Jefferson due Hicksville at 9:46 a.m.

The 9:44 a.m. train from Hicksville due Penn at 10:28 a.m.

Ronkonkoma Branch

The 6:54 a.m. train from Central Islip due Penn at 8:06 a.m.

The 6:57 a.m. train from Farmingdale due Penn at 7:48 a.m.

The 7:40 a.m. train from Ronkonkoma due Atlantic Terminal at 9:01 a.m.

The 7:51 a.m. train from Farmingdale due Penn at 8:53 a.m.

Reverse-peak eastbound service on the two branches will remain suspended. Customers looking for eastbound service are advised to seek travel on other branches.

Many Channels for Services Updates

Information about the service changes noted in this press release and all planned service changes is available through the LIRR’s real-time service information sources:

myLIRR.org – Customers can see real-time positions of upcoming trains in real time, on a smartphone-optimized map that refreshes every 3- to 5-seconds, by logging into myLIRR.org.

Email and text message service updates – Customers are urged to sign up to receive the alerts by visiting MyMTAAlerts.com. To avoid unwanted messages, a user can tailor the messages to the specific branch, and the specific times of day.

MYmta app – Customers who use the new, comprehensive MYmta app will see real-time travel information for LIRR and connecting services all in one place. As a caution, trains that start out their trips on time may experience delays en route. The LIRR Train Time app also remains available for customers to access LIRR train information.

MTA.info – “Service Status” on the homepage of new.mta.info, and at the left side of www.MTA.info is always the definitive source for the latest status for each branch, updated every minute. In addition, customers can visit www.mta.info/lirr to see special service notices in the upper center of the page.

@LIRR on Twitter – Twitter users can follow @LIRR to receive updates of a similar nature to the email and text alerts, shortened to fit Twitter’s format.

The above communications channels can be accessed while at home or on the go. For customers who are located at stations, the LIRR will post the latest service updates on digital signs at station platforms and will make audio announcements over public address systems, and on-board announcements made by train crews.

For those who prefer the telephone, information is available from the LIRR’s Customer Service Center by calling 511, the New York State Travel Information Line, and saying: “Long Island Rail Road” Those who are deaf or hard of hearing can use their preferred service provider for the free 711 relay to reach the LIRR at 511.