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Montauk Branch

The Montauk Branch is a rail line owned and operated by the Long Island Rail Road in the U.S. state of New York. The branch runs the length of Long Island, 115 miles (185 km) from Long Island City on the west to Montauk on the east. However, in LIRR maps and schedules for public use, the term Montauk Branch refers to the line east of Babylon; the line west of there is covered by Babylon Branch schedules,[2] and a few Montauk Branch trains operate via the Main Line west of Babylon due to increased track capacities.[3]

Montauk Branch
The Cannonball runs express through Bay Shore to the Hamptons along the Montauk Branch.
Overview
StatusOperational
OwnerLong Island Rail Road
LocaleLong Island, New York, USA
Termini
Stations33 (physical line); 16 (service pattern)
Service
TypeCommuter rail, freight rail
SystemLong Island Rail Road
Services
Operator(s)Metropolitan Transportation Authority (passenger)
New York and Atlantic Railway (freight)
Ridership2,424,499 (annual ridership, 2018)
Technical
Line length115.8 mi (186.4 km)
Number of tracks2 (from Long Island City to Sayville)
1 (east of Sayville)
Track gauge4 ft 8+12 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Electrification750 V (DC) third rail (Jamaica to Babylon only)
Route map

Long Island City
0.0 mi
0 km
99.9 mi
160.8 km
Lower Montauk Branch
Penny Bridge (closed)
Haberman (closed)
Fresh Pond (closed)
Glendale (closed)
Ridgewood Montauk (closed)
Richmond Hill (closed)
Zone 1
Zone 3
9.0 mi
14.5 km
Jamaica
​​
11.8 mi
19 km
Babylon & other services
11.8 mi
19 km
St. Albans
99.9 mi
160.8 km
Hempstead intermediate stops
14.0 mi
22.5 km
Rosedale
Zone 3
Zone 4
16.1 mi
25.9 km
Valley Stream
Port Jefferson intermediate stops
17.7 mi
28.5 km
Lynbrook
18.6 mi
29.9 km
Mineola
Zone 4
Zone 7
Port Jefferson intermediate stops
19.3 mi
31.1 km
Rockville Centre
21.2 mi
34.1 km
Baldwin
22.7 mi
36.5 km
Freeport
24.1 mi
38.8 km
Merrick
24.8 mi
39.9 km
Hicksville
25.6 mi
41.2 km
Bellmore
25.9 mi
41.7 km
Wantagh
27.7 mi
44.6 km
Seaford
28.7 mi
46.2 km
Massapequa
29.5 mi
47.5 km
Massapequa Park
Unqua (closed)
Zone 7
Zone 9
30.6 mi
49.2 km
Amityville
32.4 mi
52.1 km
Copiague
33.7 mi
54.2 km
Lindenhurst
36.6 mi
58.9 km
Babylon
Zone 9
Zone 10
40.7 mi
65.5 km
Bay Shore
43.1 mi
69.4 km
Islip
45.2 mi
72.7 km
Great River
Club House (closed)
47.4 mi
76.3 km
Oakdale
49.8 mi
80.1 km
Sayville
Bayport (closed)
Blue Point (closed)
53.2 mi
85.6 km
Patchogue
Hagerman (closed)
Zone 10
Zone 12
57.8 mi
93 km
Bellport
Brookhaven (closed)
62.3 mi
100.3 km
Mastic – Shirley
Mastic (closed)
East Moriches (closed)
Eastport (closed)
70.8 mi
113.9 km
Speonk
Zone 12
Zone 14
74.3 mi
119.6 km
Westhampton
Quogue (closed)
81.2 mi
130.7 km
Hampton Bays
Canoe Place (closed)
89.3 mi
143.7 km
Southampton
Water Mill (closed)
94.0 mi
151.3 km
Bridgehampton
Wainscott (closed)
100.9 mi
162.4 km
East Hampton
104.3 mi
167.9 km
Amagansett
Promised Land (closed)
115.8 mi
186.4 km
Montauk
Distances shown from Long Island City via the Lower Montauk Branch

Route description

Lower Montauk

 
Lower Montauk Branch (defunct Richmond Hill station) in 2019

The westernmost portion of the Montauk Branch in Queens, known as the "Lower Montauk," runs between the Long Island City and Jamaica stations, mostly at street level with grade crossings. Just east of the Long Island City station, the abandoned Montauk Cutoff merges with the branch. The Lower Montauk Branch had nine stations, four of which were closed by 1940. The remaining five stations (Richmond Hill, Glendale, Fresh Pond, Haberman, and Penny Bridge) were closed on March 13, 1998,[4] due to low ridership and incompatibility with then-new C3 bi-level coach cars that can only use high platforms (only Richmond Hill had an actual platform; the other four stations' platforms were just pavement strips beside the tracks). After these stations closed, the LIRR continued to use the Lower Montauk to operate non-stop trains between Jamaica and Long Island City rather than divert them to the Main Line; there were only two such trains at the time of the 1998 station closures, one westbound in the morning, and one eastbound in the evening. These two trains were re-routed north to Hunterspoint Avenue in 2012, effectively ceasing passenger train service on the Lower Montauk. Soon after, full control of the Lower Montauk was transferred to the New York and Atlantic Railway for freight operations.[5][6]

The New York City Department of Transportation has periodically floated proposals to repurpose the Lower Montauk Branch for rapid transit operations. In 1984, the Department studied an option to connect the branch to the New York City Subway through a proposed connection to the IND 63rd Street Line in Long Island City.[7] This proposal was unpopular in the communities surrounding the branch.[8] In 2017, the Department studied a plan to operate light rail service on the Lower Montauk Branch.[9]

After Penn Station opened in 1910 the Lower Montauk became the freight route, and when the present Jamaica station opened in 1913 the two Lower Montauk tracks continued past the south side of the station, south of Hall tower and the south Union Hall Street platform and on to Holban Yard. Those two tracks now carry trains to/from the Hillside Facility that has replaced Holban Yard; they can also carry nonstop Main Line trains past Jamaica station. East from Jamaica the Montauk Branch runs between the Main Line tracks (with two usually westward Main Line tracks north of it and two eastward tracks south of it) until just west of Hillside Facility. At 40°42′21″N 73°47′04″W / 40.70585°N 73.7845°W / 40.70585; -73.7845 the Montauk Branch rises to cross above the other tracks and turns southeast. At 40°40′01″N 73°44′49″W / 40.667°N 73.747°W / 40.667; -73.747 it swings parallel to the Atlantic Branch between its Laurelton and Rosedale stations. The Montauk Branch east of Jamaica is 0.7 mile longer than the Atlantic.

Babylon Branch

The portion between Jamaica and Babylon stations has been electrified since 1925, and electric trains to Babylon are often identified as a separate service, the Babylon Branch. It is grade-separated on embankments or elevated structures. From Babylon east to Montauk, diesel-electric or dual-mode electric/diesel-electric locomotives haul trains of passenger coaches.

The Montauk Line has heavy ridership and frequent service as far as Patchogue station and commuter service as far as Speonk station. In the summer, with travelers going out to The Hamptons, Fire Island and other beaches, additional service is operated to the far eastern terminal at Montauk, such as the Cannonball, a Friday afternoon train departing from Penn Station (originally Hunterspoint Avenue) and running non-stop to Westhampton station in Westhampton. The Montauk Branch, along with the parallel Atlantic Branch, spawns three subsidiary branches: the West Hempstead Branch, Far Rockaway Branch, and Long Beach Branch.

The electrified portion of the Montauk Branch ends in the village of Babylon. Some of the diesel trains on the Montauk branch begin or end their runs at Babylon station, connecting with electric trains there. Other Montauk diesel trains operate into New York City, to Jamaica station; Hunterspoint Avenue or Long Island City stations in Long Island City; or Penn Station.

East of Babylon

The terminal stations in diesel territory, east of Babylon, are Patchogue, Speonk, and Montauk. The Montauk Branch is double-tracked from just east of Long Island City (where there is a short segment of single track) all the way through Babylon, becoming single track at Y Interlocking east of the Sayville station. Some Montauk Branch diesel trains operate west to NYC via the diesel-only Central Branch, joining the Main Line east of Bethpage station. Only a few actually run via the Montauk Branch west of Babylon, under normal conditions on the Main Line.

The Montauk was home to the last tower in North America that regularly used "hooping" train operations: PD Tower, in Patchogue. "Hooping" is the transfer of instructions to the engineer and conductor by attaching the folded orders to the "hoop", a rod several feet long with a loop at the end that is passed from the ground to a moving train by catching the loop on one's arm. The last train to get hooped at PD was train 2730 on May 6, 2006.[10]

History

Currently, the Montauk Branch intersects with the Bushwick Branch, Bay Ridge Branch, West Hempstead Branch, and Central Branch, as well as the Main Line at Long Island City and Jamaica and the Atlantic Branch at Jamaica and Valley Stream; the Far Rockaway Branch and Long Beach Branch are connected via the Atlantic Branch at Valley Stream. In the past, junctions existed with the Rockaway Beach Branch (a quarter mile east of Woodhaven Boulevard), Southern Hempstead Branch (Valley Stream to Hempstead), Manorville Branch (Eastport to Manorville on the Main Line), and Sag Harbor Branch (Bridgehampton to Sag Harbor). In early times, the Scoot ran frequently between Greenport on the North Fork, "around the horn" on the Manorville Branch, and east to Sag Harbor. In their day, both of those villages were very busy, bustling ports.

Formation and early days: 1860s to 1925

The South Side Railroad of Long Island built the line from Bushwick, Brooklyn to Patchogue in the 1860s, and completed the new line to Long Island City in 1870.[11] With the reorganization of the South Side as the Southern Railroad of Long Island in 1874 and its lease by the LIRR in 1876, this line became the Southern Railroad Division,[12] Southern Railroad of Long Island Division, or simply Southern Division.[13] Effective Sunday, June 25, 1876, all Southern Division passenger trains were rerouted to use the LIRR main line from Berlin Junction (west of Jamaica) to Rockaway Junction, and the LIRR's Rockaway Branch to Springfield Junction, where it crossed the Southern. This change resulted in the closure of the Southern's Berlin, Beaver Street (Jamaica), Locust Avenue, and Springfield stations.[14] The old line between Jamaica and Springfield, which became freight-only, was renamed the Old Southern Road.[15] The Southern was reorganized as the Brooklyn and Montauk Railroad in 1879,[16] and on March 14, 1880, the name was changed from the Southern Division to the Montauk Division.[17] Thus the old South Side Railroad, except between Jamaica and Springfield Junction, was now the Montauk Division.

The LIRR opened the Sag Harbor Branch, including the present Montauk Branch from Eastport to Bridgehampton, on June 8, 1870.[18] On July 27, 1881, after the South Side became part of the LIRR, its line – then the Montauk Division – was extended east to the Sag Harbor Branch at Eastport.[19] The Sag Harbor Branch east of Eastport became part of the Montauk Division,[20] and the old line from Manor (Manorville) to Eastport became the Manor Branch.[21] An extension to Montauk, splitting off the old Sag Harbor Branch at Bridgehampton, opened to Amagansett on June 1, 1895[22] and to Montauk by September,[23] and the line between Bridgehampton and Sag Harbor reverted to the old Sag Harbor Branch name.[24]

Babylon electrification: 1925 to present

Electrification of the Montauk Division from Jamaica to Babylon was completed on May 20, 1925,[25] and normal operation began the next day.[26] The Central Extension between Bethpage and Babylon was reopened for freight trains that had run via the Montauk Division.[16]

The Montauk station was initially near the center of a sleepy fishing village at the north end of Fort Pond (where Austin Corbin built a pier in his unsuccessful effort to have trans-Atlantic ships dock there.) The Great Hurricane of 1938 devastated the terminus area and tore up sections of the roadbed. The population center then moved two miles (3 km) to the south, away from the station.

1998 saw the closure of three lightly used stations: Center Moriches, Quogue, and Southampton College. Southampton College was temporarily reinstated for the 2004 and 2018 U.S. Open tournaments at the nearby Shinnecock Hills Golf Club, along with a steel walkway over Montauk Highway. At the conclusion of the tournament, the walkway was dismantled and the temporary platform was removed.

On April 16, 2019, New York State Assemblyman Fred Thiele announced that funding to design improvements on the Montauk Branch would likely be included in the 2019–2020 state budget. The funding would be used by the LIRR to design three passing sidings to be installed on the line in single-track territory between Speonk and Montauk. The installation of passing sidings would allow for increased service on the South Fork Commuter Connection. MTA President and CEO Pat Foye said that improvements to the Montauk Branch were identified in the LIRR's request for the MTA' s Twenty-Year Needs Assessment.[27]

Stations

West Hempstead Branch trains split off after St. Albans. Babylon Branch trains terminate at Babylon, while Montauk Branch trains continue beyond. Many non-electric Montauk Branch trains that run express between Jamaica and Babylon run via the Main Line and Central Branch, with one rush hour roundtrip serving Mineola and Hicksville stations.[3]

Zone[28] Location Services Station Miles (km)
from Long Island City via the Lower Montauk Branch[1]
Date
opened
Date
closed
Connections and notes
WH BB MT
1 Long Island City, Queens   Long Island City  
(rush hours only)
1854 Long Island Rail Road: Oyster Bay and Port Jefferson branches
NYC Subway: 7 and <7>​ (at Vernon Boulevard – Jackson Avenue)
MTA Bus: Q103
NYC Ferry East River Ferry
  Served by five peak round trip trains, one of which is Montauk train[3]
Penny Bridge 1854 1998[4]
Laurel Hill 1890 1900
Maspeth, Queens Haberman 1892 1998[4]
Maspeth 1895 c. 1924
Fresh Pond 1869 1998[4] Originally named Bushwick Junction
Glendale, Queens Glendale 1869 1998[4]
Ridgewood 1883 1924
Richmond Hill, Queens Richmond Hill 1868 1998[4] Originally named Clarenceville
Shops c. 1900 1913 Part of the Morris Park Facility
Dunton 1869
1876
1876
1939
Originally named Van Wyck Avenue, then Berlin
3 Jamaica, Queens Jamaica   9.0 (14.5) 1836 Long Island Rail Road: Atlantic, Far Rockaway, Hempstead, Long Beach, Oyster Bay, Port Jefferson, Ronkonkoma branches
New York City Subway: E​, ​J, and ​Z (at Sutphin Boulevard–Archer Avenue–JFK Airport)
New York City Bus: Q20A, Q20B, Q24, Q30, Q31, Q43, Q44 SBS, Q54, Q56
MTA Bus: Q6, Q8, Q9, Q25, Q34, Q40, Q41, Q60, Q65
Nassau Inter-County Express: n4
AirTrain JFK: Jamaica Station Route
Union Hall Street c. 1890 1976 Originally named New York Avenue
Canal Street 1890[29] 1899
Hillside 1890[29] 1966
St. Albans, Queens St. Albans 11.8 (19.0) 1898[30] New York City Bus: Q4
Originally named Locust Avenue[31]
Springfield Gardens, Queens Springfield Gardens 1870s 1979 Originally named Springfield
4 Lynbrook Lynbrook   17.7 (28.5) 1867[16] Long Island Rail Road: Long Beach Branch
Nassau Inter-County Express: n4, n25, n31, n32
Originally named Pearsall's Corners, then Pearsall's
7 Rockville Centre Rockville Centre   19.3 (31.1) 1867 Nassau Inter-County Express: n15, n16, Mercy Medical Shuttle
Baldwin Baldwin   21.2 (34.1) 1867 Nassau Inter-County Express: n35
Originally named Baldwinsville,[32] then Baldwins
Freeport Freeport   22.7 (36.5) 1867 Nassau Inter-County Express: n4, n19, n40, n41, n43, n88
Merrick Merrick   24.1 (38.8) 1867
Bellmore Bellmore   25.6 (41.2) 1869
Wantagh Wantagh 25.9 (41.7) 1867 Originally named Ridgewood
Seaford Seaford   27.7 (44.6) 1899 Nassau Inter-County Express: n54
Massapequa Massapequa   28.7 (46.2) 1867 Nassau Inter-County Express: n54, n55, n80
Originally named South Oyster Bay
Massapequa Park Massapequa Park 29.5 (47.5) 1933 Nassau Inter-County Express: n54, n55, n80
East Massapequa Unqua 1880 1881
9 Amityville Amityville 30.6 (49.2) 1868 Suffolk County Transit: 1A, S1, S20, S33
Copiague Copiague 32.4 (52.1) 1902 Suffolk County Transit: S20, S31
Belmont Junction 1875 1876
Lindenhurst Lindenhurst 33.7 (54.2) 1867 Suffolk County Transit: S20
Originally named Wellwood, then Breslau
Babylon Babylon   36.6 (58.9) 1867[16] Suffolk County Transit: S20, S23, S25, S27, S29, S40, S42, S47
Originally named Seaside[16]
Terminus of electrification
10 Bay Shore Bay Shore   40.7 (65.5) 1868 Suffolk County Transit: 2A, 2B, S40, S41, S42, S45
Originally named Penataquit, then Bayshore
Islip
Islip Centre 1868 1869
Islip   43.1 (69.4) 1868 Suffolk County Transit: S42
East Islip
Club House 1870 1897
Great River   45.2 (72.7) 1897 Suffolk County Transit: 3C, S40
Originally named Youngsport
Oakdale Oakdale   47.4 (76.3) 1868 Suffolk County Transit: S40
Sayville Sayville   49.8 (80.1) 1868 Suffolk County Transit: S40, S57, S59
Sayville Ferry Service to Fire Island
Bayport Bayport 1869 1980
Blue Point Blue Point 1870
1900
1882
1980
Patchogue Patchogue   53.2 (85.6) 1869 Suffolk County Transit: 7A, 7B, S40, S54, S61, S63, S66, S68
Patchogue Village Bus
Davis Park Ferry to Fire Island
East Patchogue East Patchogue 1890[33] 1928
Hagerman Hagerman 1890 1929
12 North Bellport Bellport   57.8 (93.0) 1882 Suffolk County Transit: 7B, S66, S68
Originally named Accobomac, then Brewster Place[33]
Brookhaven Brookhaven 1884 1958
Shirley Mastic–Shirley   62.3 (100.3) 1960 Suffolk County Transit: S66, S68
Mastic Mastic 1882 1960 Originally named Forge
Center Moriches Center Moriches 1881 1998 Originally named Moriches
East Moriches East Moriches 1897 1958
Eastport Eastport 1870 1958 Originally named Moriches
Speonk Speonk   70.8 (113.9) 1870
14 Westhampton Westhampton   74.3 (119.6) 1870
Quogue Quogue 1875 1998
East Quogue East Quogue 1871 c.1883 Originally named Atlanticville[34]
Hampton Bays Hampton Bays   81.2 (130.7) 1871 Suffolk County Transit: S92
Originally named Good Ground
Canoe Place 1935 1953
Suffolk Downs 1907 1921
Shinnecock Hills Shinnecock Hills 1887 1932
Southampton College 1907
1976
1986
1939
1998
1986
Originally named Golf Grounds, then Southampton Campus
Temporarily reopened for the 1986 U.S. Open, 2004, and 2018 U.S. Opens
Southampton Southampton   89.3 (143.7) 1871 Suffolk County Transit: S92
Water Mill Water Mill 1875 c. 1968[33] Originally named Watermill
Bridgehampton Bridgehampton   94.0 (151.3) 1870 Suffolk County Transit: 10B, S92
Wainscott Wainscott 1898 1938
East Hampton East Hampton   100.9 (162.4) 1895 Suffolk County Transit: 10B, 10C, S92
Originally named Easthampton
Amagansett Amagansett   104.3 (167.9) 1895 Suffolk County Transit: 10C
Napeague Napeague Beach 1895 1927
Fanny Bartlett 1924 1928
Promised Land c. 1900 1928
Montauk Montauk   115.8 (186.4) 1895 Suffolk County Transit: 10C

References

  1. ^ a b Long Island Rail Road (May 14, 2012). "TIMETABLE No. 4" (PDF). p. IV. Retrieved August 4, 2022.
  2. ^ "MTA LIRR - LIRR Map". mta.info.
  3. ^ a b c LIRR Montauk Branch Timetable
  4. ^ a b c d e f Sengupta, Somini (March 15, 1998). "End of the Line for L.I.R.R.'s 10 Loneliest Stops". New York Times. Retrieved December 24, 2007. After 122 years, Glendale saw its last train on Friday.
  5. ^ "The LIRR Says Goodbye to Lower Montauk". thelirrtoday.com.
  6. ^ AECOM USA (January 2018). "Lower Montauk Branch Passenger Rail Study" (PDF). p. 4.
  7. ^ http://fultonhistory.com/Newspaper%2024/Ridgewood%20NY%20Times/Ridgewood%20NY%20Times%201983/Ridgewood%20NY%20Times%201983%2000361_2.pdf[bare URL PDF]
  8. ^ http://fultonhistory.com/Newspaper%2024/Ridgewood%20NY%20Times/Ridgewood%20NY%20Times%201983/Ridgewood%20NY%20Times%201983%2000774_2.pdf[bare URL PDF]
  9. ^ (PDF). New York City Department of Transportation. Archived from the original (PDF) on April 7, 2017.
  10. ^ Block Operator Chris Soundy hooping some of the last orders from “PD” tower to the engineer of eastbound DE-30ac #420 (Photo: by Pat Masterson May 4, 2006
  11. ^ "PRR Chronology, 1870" (PDF). (57.0 KiB), January 2005 Edition
  12. ^ Long Island Railroad Company, Long Island and where to Go, 1877
  13. ^ "Long Island". Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Brooklyn, NY. August 22, 1877. p. 1.
  14. ^ "Railroad Changes". Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Brooklyn, NY. June 27, 1876. p. 2.
  15. ^ "oldsouthernroad". arrts-arrchives.com.
  16. ^ a b c d e Vincent F. Seyfried, The Long Island Rail Road: A Comprehensive History, Part One: South Side R.R. of L.I., 1961
  17. ^ "Railroad Reorganization". Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Brooklyn, NY. March 15, 1880. p. 10.
  18. ^ "Railroad Dedication". Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Brooklyn, NY. June 6, 1870. p. 2.
  19. ^ "Another Link". Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Brooklyn, NY. July 22, 1881. p. 4.
  20. ^ "Golden Days". Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Brooklyn, NY. August 1, 1881. p. 4.
  21. ^ "A Forest Fire". Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Brooklyn, NY. June 13, 1896. p. 4.
  22. ^ "Latest Long Island News". Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Brooklyn, NY. June 1, 1895. p. 7.
  23. ^ "The Fall Time Table". Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Brooklyn, NY. September 7, 1895. p. 7.
  24. ^ "New Block Signals". Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Brooklyn, NY. March 8, 1896. p. 7.
  25. ^ "LONG ISLAND RAIL ROAD BABYLON ELECTRIFICATION". arrts-arrchives.com.
  26. ^ "PRR Chronology, PRR Chronology, 1925" (PDF)., June 2004 Edition
  27. ^ Wehner, Greg (April 16, 2019). "State Looks To Designate Funds For Expansion Of The LIRR Montauk Branch - Southampton". www.27east.com. Retrieved April 18, 2019.
  28. ^ "New Fares — Effective April 21, 2019". Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Retrieved April 27, 2020.
  29. ^ a b "Rapid Transit Extension". Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Brooklyn, NY. June 24, 1890. p. 1.
  30. ^ Long Island Railroad Station History (TrainsAreFun.com) January 6, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
  31. ^ 1898 Railroad Map of Queens and Kings County (Unofficial LIRR History Website)
  32. ^ "SSRR BALDWIN". arrts-arrchives.com.
  33. ^ a b c "Babylon/Montauk stations". lirrhistory.com.
  34. ^ "early LIRR stations". lirrhistory.com.

External links

Route map:

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  Media related to Montauk Branch (Long Island Rail Road) at Wikimedia Commons

montauk, branch, rail, line, owned, operated, long, island, rail, road, state, york, branch, runs, length, long, island, miles, from, long, island, city, west, montauk, east, however, lirr, maps, schedules, public, term, refers, line, east, babylon, line, west. The Montauk Branch is a rail line owned and operated by the Long Island Rail Road in the U S state of New York The branch runs the length of Long Island 115 miles 185 km from Long Island City on the west to Montauk on the east However in LIRR maps and schedules for public use the term Montauk Branch refers to the line east of Babylon the line west of there is covered by Babylon Branch schedules 2 and a few Montauk Branch trains operate via the Main Line west of Babylon due to increased track capacities 3 Montauk BranchThe Cannonball runs express through Bay Shore to the Hamptons along the Montauk Branch OverviewStatusOperationalOwnerLong Island Rail RoadLocaleLong Island New York USATerminiLong Island City physical line Bay Shore service pattern MontaukStations33 physical line 16 service pattern ServiceTypeCommuter rail freight railSystemLong Island Rail RoadServices West Hempstead Branch Babylon Branch Montauk BranchOperator s Metropolitan Transportation Authority passenger New York and Atlantic Railway freight Ridership2 424 499 annual ridership 2018 TechnicalLine length115 8 mi 186 4 km Number of tracks2 from Long Island City to Sayville 1 east of Sayville Track gauge4 ft 8 1 2 in 1 435 mm standard gaugeElectrification750 V DC third rail Jamaica to Babylon only Route mapLegendLong Island City0 0 mi0 km Main Linevia Woodside99 9 mi160 8 km Lower Montauk BranchBlissville YardPenny Bridge closed Haberman closed Navy Lead TrackGrand Avenue Lead TrackBushwick BranchFresh Pond closed Bay Ridge Branch amp New York Connecting RRGlendale closed Ridgewood Montauk closed Richmond Hill closed Richmond Hill Team TrackAtlanticMorris Park FacilityMain Linevia WoodsideZone 1Zone 39 0 mi14 5 km Jamaica 11 8 mi19 km Babylon amp other servicesAtlantic Branchvia LaureltonMain Line11 8 mi19 km St Albans99 9 mi160 8 km Springfield Gardens closed Hempstead intermediate stops14 0 mi22 5 km RosedaleQueensNassau Zone 3Zone 4Hempstead16 1 mi25 9 km Valley StreamFar RockawayWest HempsteadPort Jefferson intermediate stops17 7 mi28 5 km LynbrookLong Beach18 6 mi29 9 km MineolaZone 4Zone 7Port Jefferson intermediate stops19 3 mi31 1 km Rockville Centre21 2 mi34 1 km Baldwin22 7 mi36 5 km Freeport24 1 mi38 8 km Merrick24 8 mi39 9 km HicksvillePort Jefferson25 6 mi41 2 km Bellmore25 9 mi41 7 km Wantagh27 7 mi44 6 km Seaford28 7 mi46 2 km MassapequaRonkonkoma via Main Line29 5 mi47 5 km Massapequa ParkUnqua closed NassauSuffolk Zone 7Zone 930 6 mi49 2 km Amityville32 4 mi52 1 km Copiague33 7 mi54 2 km LindenhurstCentral Branch36 6 mi58 9 km Babylon end electrification Zone 9Zone 1040 7 mi65 5 km Bay Shore43 1 mi69 4 km Islip45 2 mi72 7 km Great RiverClub House closed 47 4 mi76 3 km Oakdale49 8 mi80 1 km SayvilleBayport closed Blue Point closed 53 2 mi85 6 km PatchogueHagerman closed Zone 10Zone 1257 8 mi93 km BellportBrookhaven closed 62 3 mi100 3 km Mastic ShirleyMastic closed Center Moriches closed East Moriches closed Manorville BranchEastport closed 70 8 mi113 9 km SpeonkZone 12Zone 1474 3 mi119 6 km WesthamptonQuogue closed 81 2 mi130 7 km Hampton BaysCanoe Place closed Shinnecock Hills closed Southampton College closed 89 3 mi143 7 km SouthamptonWater Mill closed 94 0 mi151 3 km BridgehamptonSag Harbor BranchWainscott closed 100 9 mi162 4 km East Hampton104 3 mi167 9 km AmagansettPromised Land closed 115 8 mi186 4 km MontaukDistances shown from Long Island City via the Lower Montauk BranchThis diagram viewtalkedit Contents 1 Route description 1 1 Lower Montauk 1 2 Babylon Branch 1 3 East of Babylon 2 History 2 1 Formation and early days 1860s to 1925 2 2 Babylon electrification 1925 to present 3 Stations 4 References 5 External linksRoute description EditLower Montauk Edit Lower Montauk Branch defunct Richmond Hill station in 2019 The westernmost portion of the Montauk Branch in Queens known as the Lower Montauk runs between the Long Island City and Jamaica stations mostly at street level with grade crossings Just east of the Long Island City station the abandoned Montauk Cutoff merges with the branch The Lower Montauk Branch had nine stations four of which were closed by 1940 The remaining five stations Richmond Hill Glendale Fresh Pond Haberman and Penny Bridge were closed on March 13 1998 4 due to low ridership and incompatibility with then new C3 bi level coach cars that can only use high platforms only Richmond Hill had an actual platform the other four stations platforms were just pavement strips beside the tracks After these stations closed the LIRR continued to use the Lower Montauk to operate non stop trains between Jamaica and Long Island City rather than divert them to the Main Line there were only two such trains at the time of the 1998 station closures one westbound in the morning and one eastbound in the evening These two trains were re routed north to Hunterspoint Avenue in 2012 effectively ceasing passenger train service on the Lower Montauk Soon after full control of the Lower Montauk was transferred to the New York and Atlantic Railway for freight operations 5 6 The New York City Department of Transportation has periodically floated proposals to repurpose the Lower Montauk Branch for rapid transit operations In 1984 the Department studied an option to connect the branch to the New York City Subway through a proposed connection to the IND 63rd Street Line in Long Island City 7 This proposal was unpopular in the communities surrounding the branch 8 In 2017 the Department studied a plan to operate light rail service on the Lower Montauk Branch 9 After Penn Station opened in 1910 the Lower Montauk became the freight route and when the present Jamaica station opened in 1913 the two Lower Montauk tracks continued past the south side of the station south of Hall tower and the south Union Hall Street platform and on to Holban Yard Those two tracks now carry trains to from the Hillside Facility that has replaced Holban Yard they can also carry nonstop Main Line trains past Jamaica station East from Jamaica the Montauk Branch runs between the Main Line tracks with two usually westward Main Line tracks north of it and two eastward tracks south of it until just west of Hillside Facility At 40 42 21 N 73 47 04 W 40 70585 N 73 7845 W 40 70585 73 7845 the Montauk Branch rises to cross above the other tracks and turns southeast At 40 40 01 N 73 44 49 W 40 667 N 73 747 W 40 667 73 747 it swings parallel to the Atlantic Branch between its Laurelton and Rosedale stations The Montauk Branch east of Jamaica is 0 7 mile longer than the Atlantic Babylon Branch Edit Main article Babylon Branch The portion between Jamaica and Babylon stations has been electrified since 1925 and electric trains to Babylon are often identified as a separate service the Babylon Branch It is grade separated on embankments or elevated structures From Babylon east to Montauk diesel electric or dual mode electric diesel electric locomotives haul trains of passenger coaches The Montauk Line has heavy ridership and frequent service as far as Patchogue station and commuter service as far as Speonk station In the summer with travelers going out to The Hamptons Fire Island and other beaches additional service is operated to the far eastern terminal at Montauk such as the Cannonball a Friday afternoon train departing from Penn Station originally Hunterspoint Avenue and running non stop to Westhampton station in Westhampton The Montauk Branch along with the parallel Atlantic Branch spawns three subsidiary branches the West Hempstead Branch Far Rockaway Branch and Long Beach Branch The electrified portion of the Montauk Branch ends in the village of Babylon Some of the diesel trains on the Montauk branch begin or end their runs at Babylon station connecting with electric trains there Other Montauk diesel trains operate into New York City to Jamaica station Hunterspoint Avenue or Long Island City stations in Long Island City or Penn Station East of Babylon Edit The terminal stations in diesel territory east of Babylon are Patchogue Speonk and Montauk The Montauk Branch is double tracked from just east of Long Island City where there is a short segment of single track all the way through Babylon becoming single track at Y Interlocking east of the Sayville station Some Montauk Branch diesel trains operate west to NYC via the diesel only Central Branch joining the Main Line east of Bethpage station Only a few actually run via the Montauk Branch west of Babylon under normal conditions on the Main Line The Montauk was home to the last tower in North America that regularly used hooping train operations PD Tower in Patchogue Hooping is the transfer of instructions to the engineer and conductor by attaching the folded orders to the hoop a rod several feet long with a loop at the end that is passed from the ground to a moving train by catching the loop on one s arm The last train to get hooped at PD was train 2730 on May 6 2006 10 History EditCurrently the Montauk Branch intersects with the Bushwick Branch Bay Ridge Branch West Hempstead Branch and Central Branch as well as the Main Line at Long Island City and Jamaica and the Atlantic Branch at Jamaica and Valley Stream the Far Rockaway Branch and Long Beach Branch are connected via the Atlantic Branch at Valley Stream In the past junctions existed with the Rockaway Beach Branch a quarter mile east of Woodhaven Boulevard Southern Hempstead Branch Valley Stream to Hempstead Manorville Branch Eastport to Manorville on the Main Line and Sag Harbor Branch Bridgehampton to Sag Harbor In early times the Scoot ran frequently between Greenport on the North Fork around the horn on the Manorville Branch and east to Sag Harbor In their day both of those villages were very busy bustling ports Formation and early days 1860s to 1925 Edit See also South Side Railroad of Long Island The South Side Railroad of Long Island built the line from Bushwick Brooklyn to Patchogue in the 1860s and completed the new line to Long Island City in 1870 11 With the reorganization of the South Side as the Southern Railroad of Long Island in 1874 and its lease by the LIRR in 1876 this line became the Southern Railroad Division 12 Southern Railroad of Long Island Division or simply Southern Division 13 Effective Sunday June 25 1876 all Southern Division passenger trains were rerouted to use the LIRR main line from Berlin Junction west of Jamaica to Rockaway Junction and the LIRR s Rockaway Branch to Springfield Junction where it crossed the Southern This change resulted in the closure of the Southern s Berlin Beaver Street Jamaica Locust Avenue and Springfield stations 14 The old line between Jamaica and Springfield which became freight only was renamed the Old Southern Road 15 The Southern was reorganized as the Brooklyn and Montauk Railroad in 1879 16 and on March 14 1880 the name was changed from the Southern Division to the Montauk Division 17 Thus the old South Side Railroad except between Jamaica and Springfield Junction was now the Montauk Division The LIRR opened the Sag Harbor Branch including the present Montauk Branch from Eastport to Bridgehampton on June 8 1870 18 On July 27 1881 after the South Side became part of the LIRR its line then the Montauk Division was extended east to the Sag Harbor Branch at Eastport 19 The Sag Harbor Branch east of Eastport became part of the Montauk Division 20 and the old line from Manor Manorville to Eastport became the Manor Branch 21 An extension to Montauk splitting off the old Sag Harbor Branch at Bridgehampton opened to Amagansett on June 1 1895 22 and to Montauk by September 23 and the line between Bridgehampton and Sag Harbor reverted to the old Sag Harbor Branch name 24 Babylon electrification 1925 to present Edit Electrification of the Montauk Division from Jamaica to Babylon was completed on May 20 1925 25 and normal operation began the next day 26 The Central Extension between Bethpage and Babylon was reopened for freight trains that had run via the Montauk Division 16 The Montauk station was initially near the center of a sleepy fishing village at the north end of Fort Pond where Austin Corbin built a pier in his unsuccessful effort to have trans Atlantic ships dock there The Great Hurricane of 1938 devastated the terminus area and tore up sections of the roadbed The population center then moved two miles 3 km to the south away from the station 1998 saw the closure of three lightly used stations Center Moriches Quogue and Southampton College Southampton College was temporarily reinstated for the 2004 and 2018 U S Open tournaments at the nearby Shinnecock Hills Golf Club along with a steel walkway over Montauk Highway At the conclusion of the tournament the walkway was dismantled and the temporary platform was removed On April 16 2019 New York State Assemblyman Fred Thiele announced that funding to design improvements on the Montauk Branch would likely be included in the 2019 2020 state budget The funding would be used by the LIRR to design three passing sidings to be installed on the line in single track territory between Speonk and Montauk The installation of passing sidings would allow for increased service on the South Fork Commuter Connection MTA President and CEO Pat Foye said that improvements to the Montauk Branch were identified in the LIRR s request for the MTA s Twenty Year Needs Assessment 27 88th Street grade crossing over the Lower Montauk Branch Woodhaven Boulevard overpass in background Lower Montauk passing over Grand Avenue Track 8 at LIRR Jamaica Station awaiting the arrival of a Montauk bound train Stations EditWest Hempstead Branch trains split off after St Albans Babylon Branch trains terminate at Babylon while Montauk Branch trains continue beyond Many non electric Montauk Branch trains that run express between Jamaica and Babylon run via the Main Line and Central Branch with one rush hour roundtrip serving Mineola and Hicksville stations 3 Zone 28 Location Services Station Miles km from Long Island City via the Lower Montauk Branch 1 Dateopened Dateclosed Connections and notesWH BB MT1 Long Island City Queens Long Island City rush hours only 1854 Long Island Rail Road Oyster Bay and Port Jefferson branchesNYC Subway 7 and lt 7 gt at Vernon Boulevard Jackson Avenue MTA Bus Q103NYC Ferry East River Ferry Served by five peak round trip trains one of which is Montauk train 3 Penny Bridge 1854 1998 4 Laurel Hill 1890 1900Maspeth Queens Haberman 1892 1998 4 Maspeth 1895 c 1924Fresh Pond 1869 1998 4 Originally named Bushwick JunctionGlendale Queens Glendale 1869 1998 4 Ridgewood 1883 1924Richmond Hill Queens Richmond Hill 1868 1998 4 Originally named ClarencevilleShops c 1900 1913 Part of the Morris Park FacilityDunton 18691876 18761939 Originally named Van Wyck Avenue then Berlin3 Jamaica Queens Jamaica 9 0 14 5 1836 Long Island Rail Road Atlantic Far Rockaway Hempstead Long Beach Oyster Bay Port Jefferson Ronkonkoma branchesNew York City Subway E J and Z at Sutphin Boulevard Archer Avenue JFK Airport New York City Bus Q20A Q20B Q24 Q30 Q31 Q43 Q44 SBS Q54 Q56MTA Bus Q6 Q8 Q9 Q25 Q34 Q40 Q41 Q60 Q65Nassau Inter County Express n4AirTrain JFK Jamaica Station RouteUnion Hall Street c 1890 1976 Originally named New York AvenueCanal Street 1890 29 1899Hillside 1890 29 1966St Albans Queens St Albans 11 8 19 0 1898 30 New York City Bus Q4Originally named Locust Avenue 31 Springfield Gardens Queens Springfield Gardens 1870s 1979 Originally named Springfield4 Lynbrook Lynbrook 17 7 28 5 1867 16 Long Island Rail Road Long Beach BranchNassau Inter County Express n4 n25 n31 n32Originally named Pearsall s Corners then Pearsall s7 Rockville Centre Rockville Centre 19 3 31 1 1867 Nassau Inter County Express n15 n16 Mercy Medical ShuttleBaldwin Baldwin 21 2 34 1 1867 Nassau Inter County Express n35Originally named Baldwinsville 32 then BaldwinsFreeport Freeport 22 7 36 5 1867 Nassau Inter County Express n4 n19 n40 n41 n43 n88Merrick Merrick 24 1 38 8 1867Bellmore Bellmore 25 6 41 2 1869Wantagh Wantagh 25 9 41 7 1867 Originally named RidgewoodSeaford Seaford 27 7 44 6 1899 Nassau Inter County Express n54Massapequa Massapequa 28 7 46 2 1867 Nassau Inter County Express n54 n55 n80Originally named South Oyster BayMassapequa Park Massapequa Park 29 5 47 5 1933 Nassau Inter County Express n54 n55 n80East Massapequa Unqua 1880 18819 Amityville Amityville 30 6 49 2 1868 Suffolk County Transit 1A S1 S20 S33Copiague Copiague 32 4 52 1 1902 Suffolk County Transit S20 S31Belmont Junction 1875 1876Lindenhurst Lindenhurst 33 7 54 2 1867 Suffolk County Transit S20Originally named Wellwood then BreslauBabylon Babylon 36 6 58 9 1867 16 Suffolk County Transit S20 S23 S25 S27 S29 S40 S42 S47Originally named Seaside 16 Terminus of electrification10 Bay Shore Bay Shore 40 7 65 5 1868 Suffolk County Transit 2A 2B S40 S41 S42 S45Originally named Penataquit then BayshoreIslipIslip Centre 1868 1869 Islip 43 1 69 4 1868 Suffolk County Transit S42East IslipClub House 1870 1897 Great River 45 2 72 7 1897 Suffolk County Transit 3C S40Originally named YoungsportOakdale Oakdale 47 4 76 3 1868 Suffolk County Transit S40Sayville Sayville 49 8 80 1 1868 Suffolk County Transit S40 S57 S59Sayville Ferry Service to Fire IslandBayport Bayport 1869 1980Blue Point Blue Point 18701900 18821980Patchogue Patchogue 53 2 85 6 1869 Suffolk County Transit 7A 7B S40 S54 S61 S63 S66 S68Patchogue Village BusDavis Park Ferry to Fire IslandEast Patchogue East Patchogue 1890 33 1928Hagerman Hagerman 1890 192912 North Bellport Bellport 57 8 93 0 1882 Suffolk County Transit 7B S66 S68Originally named Accobomac then Brewster Place 33 Brookhaven Brookhaven 1884 1958Shirley Mastic Shirley 62 3 100 3 1960 Suffolk County Transit S66 S68Mastic Mastic 1882 1960 Originally named ForgeCenter Moriches Center Moriches 1881 1998 Originally named MorichesEast Moriches East Moriches 1897 1958Eastport Eastport 1870 1958 Originally named MorichesSpeonk Speonk 70 8 113 9 187014 Westhampton Westhampton 74 3 119 6 1870Quogue Quogue 1875 1998East Quogue East Quogue 1871 c 1883 Originally named Atlanticville 34 Hampton Bays Hampton Bays 81 2 130 7 1871 Suffolk County Transit S92Originally named Good GroundCanoe Place 1935 1953Suffolk Downs 1907 1921Shinnecock Hills Shinnecock Hills 1887 1932Southampton College 190719761986 193919981986 Originally named Golf Grounds then Southampton CampusTemporarily reopened for the 1986 U S Open 2004 and 2018 U S OpensSouthampton Southampton 89 3 143 7 1871 Suffolk County Transit S92Water Mill Water Mill 1875 c 1968 33 Originally named WatermillBridgehampton Bridgehampton 94 0 151 3 1870 Suffolk County Transit 10B S92Wainscott Wainscott 1898 1938East Hampton East Hampton 100 9 162 4 1895 Suffolk County Transit 10B 10C S92Originally named EasthamptonAmagansett Amagansett 104 3 167 9 1895 Suffolk County Transit 10CNapeague Napeague Beach 1895 1927Fanny Bartlett 1924 1928Promised Land c 1900 1928Montauk Montauk 115 8 186 4 1895 Suffolk County Transit 10CReferences Edit a b Long Island Rail Road May 14 2012 TIMETABLE No 4 PDF p IV Retrieved August 4 2022 MTA LIRR LIRR Map mta info a b c LIRR Montauk Branch Timetable a b c d e f Sengupta Somini March 15 1998 End of the Line for L I R R s 10 Loneliest Stops New York Times Retrieved December 24 2007 After 122 years Glendale saw its last train on Friday The LIRR Says Goodbye to Lower Montauk thelirrtoday com AECOM USA January 2018 Lower Montauk Branch Passenger Rail Study PDF p 4 http fultonhistory com Newspaper 2024 Ridgewood 20NY 20Times Ridgewood 20NY 20Times 201983 Ridgewood 20NY 20Times 201983 2000361 2 pdf bare URL PDF http fultonhistory com Newspaper 2024 Ridgewood 20NY 20Times Ridgewood 20NY 20Times 201983 Ridgewood 20NY 20Times 201983 2000774 2 pdf bare URL PDF Lower Montauk Branch Rail Study PDF New York City Department of Transportation Archived from the original PDF on April 7 2017 Block Operator Chris Soundy hooping some of the last orders from PD tower to the engineer of eastbound DE 30ac 420 Photo by Pat Masterson May 4 2006 PRR Chronology 1870 PDF 57 0 KiB January 2005 Edition Long Island Railroad Company Long Island and where to Go 1877 Long Island Brooklyn Daily Eagle Brooklyn NY August 22 1877 p 1 Railroad Changes Brooklyn Daily Eagle Brooklyn NY June 27 1876 p 2 oldsouthernroad arrts arrchives com a b c d e Vincent F Seyfried The Long Island Rail Road A Comprehensive History Part One South Side R R of L I 1961 Railroad Reorganization Brooklyn Daily Eagle Brooklyn NY March 15 1880 p 10 Railroad Dedication Brooklyn Daily Eagle Brooklyn NY June 6 1870 p 2 Another Link Brooklyn Daily Eagle Brooklyn NY July 22 1881 p 4 Golden Days Brooklyn Daily Eagle Brooklyn NY August 1 1881 p 4 A Forest Fire Brooklyn Daily Eagle Brooklyn NY June 13 1896 p 4 Latest Long Island News Brooklyn Daily Eagle Brooklyn NY June 1 1895 p 7 The Fall Time Table Brooklyn Daily Eagle Brooklyn NY September 7 1895 p 7 New Block Signals Brooklyn Daily Eagle Brooklyn NY March 8 1896 p 7 LONG ISLAND RAIL ROAD BABYLON ELECTRIFICATION arrts arrchives com PRR Chronology PRR Chronology 1925 PDF June 2004 Edition Wehner Greg April 16 2019 State Looks To Designate Funds For Expansion Of The LIRR Montauk Branch Southampton www 27east com Retrieved April 18 2019 New Fares Effective April 21 2019 Metropolitan Transportation Authority Retrieved April 27 2020 a b Rapid Transit Extension Brooklyn Daily Eagle Brooklyn NY June 24 1890 p 1 Long Island Railroad Station History TrainsAreFun com Archived January 6 2011 at the Wayback Machine 1898 Railroad Map of Queens and Kings County Unofficial LIRR History Website SSRR BALDWIN arrts arrchives com a b c Babylon Montauk stations lirrhistory com early LIRR stations lirrhistory com External links EditRoute map KML file edit help Template Attached KML Montauk BranchKML is not from Wikidata Media related to Montauk Branch Long Island Rail Road at Wikimedia Commons Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Montauk Branch amp oldid 1124615491 Lower Montauk, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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