New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo is proposing a third set of tracks on the Long Island Rail Road main line, saying it would address the region's infrastructure challenges while also generating an economic boost.
Cuomo said in a speech Tuesday morning to the Long Island Association that a third set of tracks on the line between Floral Park and Hicksville would reduce delays and increase train flexibility for those who commute to Manhattan. The Democratic governor said the third track would measure 9.8 miles in Nassau County and cost around $1 billion. The project would be funded as part of the MTA's $29 billion five-year capital plan approved by the agency in October that is still subject to approval by a state review board.
"It will increase track capacity making it easier to run trains both ways," said Cuomo in his speech. "By improving service reliability, we can make mass transit more attractive."
The MTA pushed for a longer third LIRR track measuring 11.5 miles a decade ago that was abandoned in 2008 due to funding obstacles and community opposition in the Village of Floral Park. Cuomo said this plan would dramatically lessen the impact on residents with the number of property acquisitions reduced to 50 compared to 200 in other proposals. Only 20 of the impacted properties would involve residences with the average acquisition equating to five feet and affected homeowners compensated for by the state for lost land.
Cuomo said the LIRR track expansion would help complement other MTA initiatives in the works including the East Side Access megaproject connecting Long Island to Manhattan's Grand Central Terminal. The MTA, which is one of the largest municipal issuers in the nation with roughly $36 billion in debt, is slated to fully complete the estimated over $10 billion project by 2022.
"Our efforts to expand the Main Line will support transit-oriented development around Long Island and make it easier for Long Island to attract businesses and employees," said MTA Chairman and CEO Thomas Prendergast in a statement. "When there is train capacity to allow New York City residents to 'reverse commute' to suburban jobs, people take that opportunity and the job growth follows."
Cuomo also pitched in his speech the need to address other transportation challenges on Long Island's Nassau and Suffolk counties including the need for accessibility across Long Island Sound. He is proposing spending $5 million in the fiscal 2017 budget to study the feasibility of building a tunnel under Long Island Sound to the Bronx, Westchester County or Connecticut. Cuomo's budget address to the state legislature is slated for Jan. 13.
"The key to unlocking the economic potential of this region is building a 21st Century transportation infrastructure," said Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone in a statement. "This is the key to building an innovation economy in our region, and Governor Cuomo's bold, ambitious plan will help us to accomplish exactly that."
