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| Re: Significant part of former LIRR Wading River Branch to become rail trail (769757) | |||
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Re: Significant part of former LIRR Wading River Branch to become rail trail |
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Posted by GP38/R42 Chris on Mon Apr 13 11:47:24 2009, in response to Re: Significant part of former LIRR Wading River Branch to become rail trail, posted by Chris R16/R2730 on Mon Apr 13 11:18:18 2009. Making the main line MORE convenient is not really an answer.Something has GOT to be done with the Ronkonkoma problem, and the first step is yes, finally breaking that artificial barrier they created by having unusable service east of Ronkonkoma. That act has totally squashed the demand at stations like Yaphank and Meford where demand DOES exist. Something has got to give there. I always said they should at leas have Patchogue to Speonk-like service between Ronkonkoma and Riverhead, that would be a start, but electrification to Yaphank, or the border of Manorville is something that really NEEDS to be done to even begin to rectify the Ronkonkoma problem. And the people that left the PJ line and the Montauk line to use the Ronkonkoma line will not be easily shifted back, especially in the case of the PJ line. The best electrification can do to the PJ line, besides eliminating the two seat ride is making the ride about 10 minutes faster. That is not going to sway the people back from using the Ronkonkoma branch, which is straight, and much faster. People would much rather spend an extra 15 minutes to a 1/2 hour driving in their private cars to the Ronkonkoma station (or Yaphank when it's electrified) than spend an extra 1/2 hour on the train. But that being said, after electrification to Yaphank, or truly, even Riverhead (ala a Wassaic style expansion which also is a pretty sparse area), the next step would be to revist the PJ line, and perhaps after that onward to Patchogue. Truthfully, I think the Montauk Branch electrification would need to go to Mastic-Shirley, which is technically the suburbanization line. Patchougue is the logical choice, but there's no room for a yard. Sayville is too short to stop (it would be the equivilent of making Stony Brook the end of electrification on the PJ line), and all making the end at Sayville would be to bring unmerciful traffic to Lakeland Ave. Sayville isn't the place. Bellport is not large enough, an while the space is there, it would be a ridiculous place to terminate trains.....Speonk is overkill, and too far. Mastic Shirley makes sense. |
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