Track work means LIRR service cuts

As a result of a track modernization project in Mineola, the Long Island Rail Road will undergo service reductions and adjustments throughout the month of August.

One of two main line tracks will be out of service during designated hours on Saturdays and Sundays through Aug. 28. During those times, LIRR staff will install new running rails and make repairs at the Willis Avenue grade crossing. On Saturdays, some 24,000 customers traveling east and west of the Jamaica station must modify their schedules, while 1,200 customers eastbound and 1,700 customers westbound will be affected on Sundays.

Customers can expect fewer trains on the Huntington Branch, where hourly service will replace half-hourly service. Likewise, Port Jefferson trains and Oyster Bay Branch trains will now run every two hours.

Other branches, like Babylon and Ronkonkoma, will experience increased travel time.  Commuters using the Far Rockaway Branch will still have to change at Jamaica, although they must board an earlier train on Sundays to accommodate for the 12:16 a.m. train from Penn Station, which was canceled.