future LIRR electrifications

Hello,
I have been wondering this for awhile. I read on wikipedia that the LIRR is looking to electrify babylon central [Between babylon and Hicksville] and Babylon to Speonk. Does anybody know anything about this or have any information?

I support Speonk electrification, being a yard location and decent traffic. On off-peak periods and weekends electric trains could run to Speonk, with a cross-platform transfer to a diesel shuttle to the Hamptons and Montauk.

R36 Combine Coach wrote:I support Speonk electrification, being a yard location and decent traffic. On off-peak periods and weekends electric trains could run to Speonk, with a cross-platform transfer to a diesel shuttle to the Hamptons and Montauk.

How could it be cross platform if there's only one platform in Speonk ? LIRR should focus on ESA and double tracking the rest of the Main Line to KO, not electrifying to nowhere. But it is strange that they didn't electrify the Central Branch, would hep more than hurt.

Port Jeff electrification and double tracking makes more sense to me than the Montauk Branch. Of course, the Central Branch should be the most important to electrify, as this weekend's service pattern shows.

ESA will be it for a long, long time. No chance of any changes to the LIRR as it currently exists. The MTA doesn't have the money now, and it won't in the future. The bills for the debt built up since the '70's & '80's is due....30,000,000,000 dollars, isn't that the latest figure?

I think they should electrify the central branch as well. You could run more service from the south shore to the north shore from Babylon without having to go all the way to Jamaica.

If you could forgive a question from the uninitiated, what is the goal of electrification? Is the idea to improve the reliability of service through use of electric equipment, which is more reliable? Are they also more cost-effective? Is part of it going for a one-seat ride?

Operating costs are dramatically cheaper.

Reliability and operational flexibility is much better.

Travel time and capacity are greatly increased and are train lengths.

Crew costs are reduced and manpower efficiency increases.

Maintenance and operating costs per passenger/mile are reduced.

Conversion to rapid transit-type operation and its benefits (!) are greatly accomplished.

Tool, I was out east recently on a greenport train. It looked like they were laying the same cables we saw being put in, when they went to 261 from Patchougue to speonk. Are there any plans to 261 from KO to greenport?

Why not just turn the LIRR into one big subway?

Thought they were taking about extending to yaphank a few years ago

keyboardkat wrote:Why not just turn the LIRR into one big subway?

Complete with panhandlers selling me batteries?

The LIRR is not meant to be a subway system. They are a commuter rail plus that would be alot of money.

With the automated fare collection that is coming, it will be difficult to tell them apart.

peanut1 wrote:The LIRR is not meant to be a subway system. They are a commuter rail plus that would be alot of money.

My comment about turning the LIRR into one big subway system was meant sarcastically. I certainly would not want that, although the LIRR, which used to be a RAILROAD, now seems much more of a transit machine, with cloned, lookalike MU cars, and cloned, lookalike locomotives and double deckers. Give me the LIRR of the late '50s and early '60s, with great on-time service even with older equipment, with a variety of locomotives from two manufacturers, and a variety of passenger rolling stock from MP-70 double decker MUs, to P-72s, to P-54s, and two Budd RDCs.