Capital Funds to Backstop LIRR Renovations

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Wednesday announced major capital investments to improve two key stations on the Long Island Rail Road's 40-mile spine between Jamaica and Ronkonkoma.

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority, a state agency and one of the largest municipal issuers, operates the LIRR.

Work has begun on a $121 million initiative to rebuild, reimagine and modernize the Hicksville station, the busiest station on Long Island. In addition, said Cuomo, the LIRR has awarded a $64.9 million contract to create a new platform and tracks at the Jamaica station, the LIRR's central hub and main transfer point.

"Revamping these two heavily trafficked transportation hubs will provide better, faster and more reliable train service for Long Island Rail Road riders," Cuomo said.

According to MTA Chairman Thomas Prendergast, the project is one element of a modernization of Jamaica Station, which opened in 1913. The work will streamline track configurations, which have remained largely unchanged since the station was built, and speed service.

The project began in 2010 and the MTA is carrying it out in two phases with a projected investment of $442 million by the end of 2019.

Funding for Phase I of the project comes from a combination of the MTA's 2010-2014 and the 2015-2019 capital plans.

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Transportation industry New York
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