LIRR Commuters: Amtrak Derailment To Affect Evening Rush Hour

Long Island Rail Road commuters can expect cancellations and delays during the Friday evening rush hour due to an earlier Amtrak derailment at Penn Station, the Metropolitan Transit Authority says.

The MTA suggests commuters take the following actions:

• Leave New York City before 4 p.m.
• Delay departure until after 8 p.m.
• Depart from Atlantic Terminal in Brooklyn as an alternative

Due to the Amtrak derailment, the LIRR has lost more than 50 percent of its normal track space at Penn Station. Typically, the LIRR has use of nine departure tracks, Tracks 13 through 21, but will be limited to Tracks 18 through 21 during Friday rush hour.

Amtrak Derailment

Amtrak officials released the following statement about the incident:

"Around 9 a.m. today, Acela Express Train 2151 had a minor derailment while moving at a slow speed while departing New York Penn Station. The rear of the train was still on the platform, and all 248 passengers have exited the train onto the platform and into the station safely. Service into and out of New York Penn Station will be delayed while we investigate this incident."

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The Long Island Rail Road Commuter Council is calling on Amtrak and NJ TRANSIT to conduct a full investigation of this derailment incident and to publicly share the results of this inquiry promptly and openly.

LIRRCC Chair Mark Epstein said “The Council continues to advocate for the appointment of an LIRR rider to the Amtrak Board of Directors. We believe that this is fully justified as the LIRR is the largest commuter railroad in the nation and its riders are profoundly affected by Amtrak’s actions and operations in the facilities that the LIRR and Amtrak share.”

Image via Flickr Creative Commons/Joe Shlabotnik