Metro-North Railroad for years has been studying ways to improve transit service in Orange County, and that always has included the tantalizing possibility that people one day may be able to take a train to Stewart International Airport.
That day still may come, but it won’t be soon.
When Metro-North officials host an open house on the $5.4 million study next week, they will discuss four possible new commuter bus routes, three commuter rail alignments on the Port Jervis Line and two shuttle bus services running from train stations, all of which will be evaluated further in the second phase to select a locally preferred alternative. The meeting is from 4 to 8 p.m. Tuesday at Hilton Garden Inn, 15 Crossroads Court, Newburgh.
Metro-North spokeswoman Marjorie Anders said the Stewart rail link remained a possibility and could be implemented later as passenger use increases.
Agency officials have been talking for years about building a rail link from the Salisbury Mills station to Stewart, about four miles away in New Windsor. The link could cost from $610 million to $840 million to build, and the study found direct service could provide up to 1,100 trips a day to Stewart in 2035.
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