Since the renovation of Port Jefferson train station in 2019, some previously available seating has been either relocated or removed.
One village resident, who agreed to be interviewed for this story but asked to be unnamed, suggested that a lack of available seating at the station poses an unnecessary burden for the elderly and physically disabled.
“There is no reason we shouldn’t have access to seating, enough of it available to all,” the resident said. “We have to treat all people with dignity. People who are handicapped, those who are paying, the railroad owes us a seat as well as comfort.”
While the indoor ticket area has seating for 12, these seats are available only from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. During the time when the area is closed to the public, outdoor seating becomes limited.
With few options to sit along the platform, some passengers have resorted to sitting on the floor or on the steps of the platform.
Gregory Adams, above, said the present layout of the train station impedes his ability to sit comfortably. Photo by Carolyn Sackstein
Gregory Adams, a resident of Wyandanch, uses a cane to walk. He said the present layout of the train station impedes his ability to sit comfortably while waiting for a train.
“A person like me waiting for the train needs to sit down,” he said. “Not having a place to sit has been a hardship. I have to sit on the steps over there, waiting.”
Historical context
The Port Jefferson station has undergone a series of transformations over the last few decades.
A 2001 restoration of the station returned the facility to its 1903 design by architects John J. Petit and James C. Green. In 2019 Long Island Rail Road completed its most recent updates with a refurbished and painted ticketing area, updated restrooms, new paving, curbing and signage, electronic charging stations, parking stall painting, traffic flow markings and brick paver walkways. The restoration was much needed, according to some village residents who are pleased overall with the improvements made to the layout.
Until recently, there was only one designated outdoor seating area at the station, located on the far end of the platform. This enclosure includes a bench with armrests that designate six seats. It is located between the pedestrian bridge, which links the south parking lot to the platform north of the tracks, and the ticketing area.
Village resident Mary Dylan was sitting on the new bench when TBR News Media asked her for a comment. Dylan considered her experience of using the new seating area to be a positive one. “It is nice to see all the new improvements [at the station] and I particularly like the new bench put there,” she said.
TBR News Media approached several other people at the station for comment on the subject of seating. While most were also unwilling to provide their names, some offered commentary of their own experiences with the facility and its amenities.
The indoor ticketing area is manned by at least one LIRR employee during business hours. Those questioned said the presence of LIRR personnel on-site provided a sense of comfort and security for those sitting indoors.
Other riders said they prefer to wait outside in the fresh air. One person preferred to wait outside as the indoor area is away from public view.
Adams and some other concerned passengers were pleased to learn that the new bench was recently installed outside the ticketing area. The installation of this seating area, which lies on the east side of the ticket office, is an indicator that LIRR is responding to public concerns.
Correction: In an earlier version of this article, famed architect Stanford White was falsely credited for the 1903 design of Port Jefferson train station. The true architects of the station were John J. Petit and James C. Green.
Port Jeff village trustee on his role in tackling the big projects
Trustee Bruce Miller (right) being sworn into office. Photo courtesy of Miller
By Raymond Janis
Village of Port Jefferson trustee Bruce Miller has taken on several big projects throughout his time in office.
TBR News Media had an opportunity this week to catch up with him for an exclusive interview. In this interview, Miller addresses his background in education, the East Beach bluff, his preference for architecture and more.
What is your background and why did you get involved in local government?
I was always a believer in public service. I got that from my parents, who also felt the value of contributing. I was drafted into the Army in ’66 and left as a sergeant with honorable discharge. I am a 2nd vice commander of the American Legion post in Port Jefferson Station.
I got an excellent education from Stony Brook University. From there, I became a public school teacher in special education. While I was doing this, I also volunteered at my daughter’s school. I was on the [Port Jefferson] school board for 12 years, a president, vice president, and a budget and technology chairperson.
I was a teacher that understood board politics and the requirements of training teachers. I was the driving force in moving the district from what I would consider mediocre in this region to a nationally ranked school district. We achieved a level of 34th in the nation, according to a Washington Post survey, and this drove up our real estate values. We were number one for several years in New York state with real estate appreciation and one year we were near 10th in the nation. And this is not me saying this, but The New York Times saying this. I had a very successful run during my 12 years on the school board.
I have been working for about 30 years on the conservation and advisory committee. I was for a while the trustee liaison to that committee. It used to be a board and I would like to see that happen again.
There’s a lot more, but maybe I can speak to them through some specific questions.
Miller receives a regional Scope award for educational excellence during his tenure as a school board member. Photo courtesy of Miller
How has your background as an educator shaped your approach as village trustee?
There are two aspects to my educational background: my teaching background and my school board background. As a teacher, I was a public servant and of course the village board is a public office. In teaching, you know there are budgets to deal with and priorities to be set. As a school board member, again you’re dealing with budgets. I dealt a lot with technology, doing what I thought was forward looking and I found that I could better express myself in bringing excellent technology to the school district in Port Jefferson.
Because of my educational background, and by working hard in this effort, we brought really excellent education and technology to the district. Budgets are another aspect. You have to be able to fund these things, and in a public forum you need to be able to get support from the public. You need to be able to persuade people that you have a vision, whether it’s in the school district or the village.
What are the most critical issues facing the village?
Critical has a number of meanings, one of which is that something is happening now and you have to do something about it. In that context, something is happening now: Our [East Beach] bluff is eroding and we have to do something about it.
We can either let the country club slide into the Long Island Sound or we can take measures to remediate. You have the country club above and the beach below. I voted for a rock wall that would preserve the beach and access to the beach. There is another, larger plan that we are still looking at that involves driving steel sheeting in front of the country club. We’re within literally a couple of feet of losing the tennis courts and they are going. New plans have to be made for them.
The question is do you go for the steel sheeting or do you let nature take its course? I’m not decided on that at this point. One of the things I respect about the village is that we have a lot of intelligent people who bring a lot of knowledge and background. In the few discussions we’ve had over Zoom, there were suggestions that were very positive that were an alternative to the steel sheeting suggestion.
I have been emailing the board for a very long time regarding the fact that a) we should have a public hearing on this, which is not going to happen; and b) that we should be permitting the residents to vote on a bond. We’re talking about $10 million total on this project and they should decide what they want and we should be listening to all the viewpoints. We should be more open and transparent in terms of solutions and alternatives.
We’re also losing revenue on the power plant. Over a number of years, we’re going to lose 47% of the revenue and we’re more than halfway through that process. Obviously, the businesspeople are going to see more in taxes because we’re receiving less from an alternate source. In my opinion, we need to rebuild with quality, so that you have a magnet for Port Jefferson, for the business community.
A lot of people come to Port Jefferson because it’s different. It’s a real village with a history and people like that. We should be emphasizing that history. We also need to focus on green energy. We need to do as much as we can. By doing this, bring more revenue into the village, the school district, the fire department, the library, etc.
How would you like to preserve what you call the New England heritage within the village?
Miller at Village Hall in Port Jefferson. File photo
We’re already doing some of that. We have what we call the Roe House, which is on Barnum Avenue. This is from the Roe family. It’s an authentic, prerevolutionary, colonial structure. We have a number of exhibits within the Roe House that point to our history.
We often call it the Setauket Spy Ring, but Port Jefferson was also part of this history, the Roes are a part of this history. We have this heritage, it’s important, and we are emphasizing it. We’re going to see an upgrade in the status of the building. It now has a historic designation and we’re going to see more of that.
How has the village changed from the time you took office and what measures have you taken to guide those changes?
There’s been an awful lot of change in regards to uptown development. When I first came into office, this was in the project stage. Now we’re seeing stuff rising above the ground and a number of properties that are either approved or well along in the approval process. There’s a former fish restaurant [PJ Lobster House] on North Country Road and 25A. The restaurant has moved downtown and they’re beginning the demolition phase.
We’ve seen a project on Texaco Avenue that has been completed, two other projects at the foot of Main and Broadway completed. Another project where a former carpet store, Cappy’s Carpets, used to be has been completed and occupied.
There are a lot of problems with flooding in Port Jefferson, a lot of hills. Everything runs down into the lower Port area. I’ve been talking about mixed surfaces, not just hard pavement, which contribute to the velocity of the water. We’re making some progress with that by having water gardens.
We have developed our parks, which I think are very attractive. We have a Dickens Festival that draws people into the village, which of course the merchants love. It’s really an excellent festival, voted best festival on Long Island several times. Every year it gets a little better.
When I was in the school district, the motto was: “Excellent at getting better.” I want to achieve that and live up to that. When I’m in the village, I want to see excellence. I have had battles over architecture. I want it to be excellent, to improve the village, and to attract more people to the village.
When I was in the school district, the motto was: “Excellent at getting better.” I want to achieve that and live up to that. — Bruce Miller
You have an upcoming meeting with representatives of the Long Island Rail Road. Could you preview that meeting?
It’s about a vision, about looking at a need, seeing an alternative to the present situation, and advocating for that.
A lot of this is about developing networks and relationships. I’ve met with Phil Eng, the former LIRR chairperson, under the context of a better ride. It’s a long ride to Manhattan for a lot of people who commute. Out of necessity, it requires a transfer either at Huntington or Hicksville because you cannot take a diesel engine into Manhattan. The future is a better ride into Penn Station, but also a better ride into Grand Central Station, which will be a possibility in the future.
This requires electric energy and how do you get that? Obviously a third rail is a possible solution, a very expensive solution. My comments to Mr. Eng and his associates have been, “By the way, we pay taxes too.” There was a time when the Ronkonkoma line, which has a decent ride, was diesel, but they electrified it. So is it our turn? This is what I’ve been advocating for.
We want to get our foot on the ladder. We’re kind of standing at the bottom of the ladder watching everybody else go by. We want to get on the ladder and then move upward. On [May 31], we will be meeting with the Long Island Rail Road planning people to discuss the future and the possibilities. We will be discussing the schedule, we will be discussing a second track, we will be discussing a third rail, battery electric, and moving the LIRR station in Port Jefferson. Basically they would move the station and the rail yards west and eliminate the crossing in Upper Port, which would do a lot for traffic.
I work on big projects and these are not accomplished in six months or a year. It takes several terms, but if you achieve these goals, they are very positive for the residents of the village.
Trustee Bruce Miller delivers a speech regarding National Grid. File photo
In your opinion, how can residents play a more active role in decision-making?
I had mentioned the country club and participation on the part of the residents in terms of a public hearing and being able to vote on major issues that affect them. I believe we should have more participation in this area.
During COVID, we had board meetings on Zoom. Now we have public meetings where the public attends, but we’re not having meetings on Zoom. Some of the people I know in the village who are infirm or who have particular medical issues that prevent them from attending public meetings are kind of shut out of the process. I am pressing, and will continue to press, for public meetings upstairs in the Village Hall, but also a component on Zoom where people can not only look in but participate as we had done during the COVID era.
I think that would be a very important step forward. I have just learned that Riverhead is going to be doing this and there are a number of other communities on Long Island that do this. In the past, people who are not comfortable going into public places were shut out, unable to participate. Now they are shut out again and I believe we should be supporting them.
Is there anything else that you would like to say to our readers?
As I said, I’m a person that works on big projects. I like to be a team member, but there are also certain times when you have to go against the grain. My belief is that I am an independent trustee. I’ve worked hard for the village and the school district. Also, in between my village and school district experience, I co-founded a grassroots committee to repower Port Jefferson.
I’ve worked with legislative leaders at all levels — town, village, county, state and congressional people as well. I believe that I have a vision. I have demonstrated in the past that I have executed on that vision and I want to continue to serve. I believe in service, I believe in giving back. I’m not wealthy, but I’m comfortable. I have time and I would like to contribute.
Green energy is very important to me. Making the village affordable is a very high priority for me. Transportation has become a high priority. I believe I have the vision and the energy and the diligence to work on this. I think the village needs a voice that will stand up and say, “No, this is not right.”
I am a very positive person, a very optimistic person, and I believe I take this optimism and enthusiasm to the work that I do.
Prices at a North Shore gas station. Photo by Jim Hastings
Consumers are not the only ones feeling the pinch of ballooning gas prices here on Long Island.
Kevin Beyer is vice president of government affairs at the Long Island Gasoline Retailers Association, a nonprofit trade association which represents over 700 independent service stations throughout Suffolk, Nassau and Queens. According to Beyer, gas retailers are suffering as well.
“When it hurts you as a consumer, it hurts us,” Beyer said in a phone interview. “People think that when prices go up, these gas stations are making a killing. It’s quite the opposite because we’re constantly trying to keep the price down. When we start making money is usually when [the price of gas] levels out or it goes down.”
Beyer also notes that the cost of diesel fuel has increased exponentially. This affects a wide range of consumers, particularly commercial and pickup truck drivers.
“There are a lot of consumers that use diesel because a lot of people have bought pickup trucks in the last few years,” he said.
Despite recent calls for electric vehicles, Beyer believes that the wholesale transition to electric cars is not feasible due to difficulties related to the technology and is counterintuitive due to already high utility rates in New York.
“You have to deal with massive batteries that have to be produced,” Beyer said. “To produce the batteries, you’re buying products from other countries, number one. Number two, to discard these batteries, you’re talking about a hazard. Number three, there aren’t a lot of charging stations, and New York and California already have probably the highest utility rates in the country.”
Beyer believes that as gas prices continue to rise, governments that tax oil will have a windfall profit. This is why he said LIGRA is lobbying to remove gas taxes at the county and state levels.
“One thing that we are working on is to try to push for some tax relief, even on the county and state levels,” he said. “People don’t realize that they’re making a fortune — the county and the state — as the cost goes up because it’s a percentage per gallon.”
Other than the railroad which carries the commuters, Long Island is not a mass transit-friendly community.
— Martin Cantor
Soaring gas prices will also disrupt local businesses on Long Island, according to Martin Cantor, director of the Long Island Center for Socio-Economic Policy and author of “Long Island, the Global Economy and Race.”
According to Cantor, Long Island was originally envisioned as a bedroom community for New York City residents. To continue their existing way of life, commuters who drive to work have no choice but to pay up.
“The reality is that Long Island has a workforce of about 1.4 million people with, at its peak, 300,000 Long Islanders commuting daily on the Long Island Rail Road,” he said. “With the LIRR operating at 48% of pre-pandemic capacity, some of the workforce has no option but to fill up at the high prices.”
According to Cantor, Long Island’s transportation networks were not designed to support the commuter economy of today. He said antiquated public transit systems have led to increased reliance on automobiles.
“Other than the railroad which carries the commuters, Long Island is not a mass transit-friendly community,” he said. “We just don’t have enough public transportation to carry Long Islanders around. We are wedded to our cars and will continue to be.”
Cantor said that the exorbitant cost of gas will leave residents with less discretionary income, which in turn will harm local businesses.
“Just think, a year ago [gas] was pretty much half the price,” he said. “Right now, with gasoline prices so high, as people have to go to work and have to commute to work, more people are putting gasoline in their cars at higher prices and have less money to spend in the surrounding communities.”
Cantor believes that not only drivers will suffer due to the cost of gas, but that local business owners will take a major hit as well.
“Some of the workforce has no option but to fill up at the high prices,” he said. “That will hurt the economy because the money we spend for gasoline really gets exported off the Island. Those additional dollars we spend for gasoline will take money out of Long Islanders’ pockets to spend. That’s going to hurt the small businesses that already are hurting from the pandemic.”
To read about Cantor’s work, visit martincantor.com.
Local representatives gathered at the Lawrence Aviation property last year to identify where a rail yard could be built. Photo from state Sen. Anthony Palumbo’s office
Discussions have dragged on and on, and even as years turned to decades the dream of an electrified northern line of the Long Island Rail Road has shuddered along, like a train limping forward on little to no steam.
Though local leaders now say the time is ripe. With state reps championing the cause in Albany, local leaders are holding up a plum location for the necessary rail yard: Lawrence Aviation.
The former site of Lawrence Aviation Industries. File photo
The 126-acre superfund site in Port Jefferson Station has sat vacant since 2000, after the airplane parts company was accused of leaching chemicals into the ground. Ground cleanup was completed in 2009, and asbestos was removed from some of the buildings in 2015, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
Various sources confirmed that late last year, local civic leaders as well as representatives from Brookhaven, Smithtown and Huntington townships, joined Suffolk County and state leaders on the superfund site property to identify where such a rail yard could be built. The latest update on the property by the EPA, dated October 2021, stated that the site consists of 10 buildings, a drum crushing site, and a vacant lagoon and woods.
Yet officials across both parties have long supported the project, which has been talked about for over four decades. It’s a project the environmental and economics-minded people have been on board with. Both previous state Sens. Ken LaValle (R-Port Jefferson) and John Flanagan (R-East Northport) were proponents, and many electeds like Brookhaven Town Supervisor Ed Romaine (R) have long called on the Metropolitan Transportation Authority to move the project forward.
What’s different now? Charlie Lefkowitz, president of Three Village Chamber of Commerce, said the most recent change in state leadership has resulted in a “newfound focus” on electrification. He agreed that Lawrence Aviation, which is tucked far enough away from residential houses to be not detrimental to homeowners, would be an optimal place for a yard.
The chamber leader also cited how much of a beneficial impact electrifying the line would have on the surrounding economy, especially with how Stony Brook students can use the train to traverse to hotspots like Port Jefferson or Huntington villages.
“Creating viable, sustainable public transportation really has to be looked at hard here,” Lefkowitz said.
In a written statement, state Sen. Anthony Palumbo (R-New Suffolk) further put his support behind the project.
“There is broad and bipartisan support to turn the site into a new rail yard to provide greater service to the region,” he wrote. “It is also a crucial component in the plan to electrify the Port Jefferson line. With the state and federal government investing billions of dollars in infrastructure there is no excuse not to get these projects completed now.”
“Creating viable, sustainable public transportation really has to be looked at hard here.”
— Charlie Lefkowitz
Suffolk County officials said they have had this property in mind for civic development since at least 2015. Deputy County Executive Peter Scully, known as the county’s water quality czar, said that there’s a current $860,000 annual cost to taxpayers due to a number of liens on the property, and the federal government is also looking to make up costs on the $150 million cleanup.
The county has already received legislative approval to settle with all the lien claimants, and execution on those settlements will likely happen in the next six to eight weeks, according to the deputy county executive.
“We have developed a cooperative working relationship with the state and federal governments to process those liens,” Scully said during a Zoom interview.
The Suffolk County Landbank put out a request for proposal in July of last year for companies to develop the Lawrence Aviation site. Early concepts of the site detail a portion of the property zoned for light industrial, while another section on the eastern end will be preserved as open space. Notably, the north end of the property conceptualizes an MTA railyard. The study also mentions potential plans to reroute the train tracks and potentially moving the Port Jefferson train station onto the Lawrence Aviation site as well, which would eliminate the crossing on Route 112.
Sarah Lansdale, president of the landbank and the county’s planning and environment director, said that and other concepts are on the table.
She confirmed the county received one bid back on the RFP for a solar farm on the industrial part of the property, though she did not offer further details as negotiations are ongoing.
Waiting on the MTA
With those claims out of the way, all that’s left is for the MTA to make a decision regarding electrification, but the transportation entity has been notoriously tight-lipped regarding this and other projects. The MTA included $4 million in their five-year 2015-19 capital plan to pay for a feasibility study on electrification of the Port Jefferson Branch, and while the transportation entity confirmed the study is in motion, there is no word on when it will be completed.
Dave Steckel, a spokesperson for the MTA, said in a statement that a feasibility study is one “among a variety of transit proposals throughout the region” and that “the authority will assess the study and other regional proposals using consistent metrics — such as cost, ridership, etc. — so that they can be comparatively evaluated.”
The analysis will also be used in MTA’s 20-year needs assessment, which is due next year.
That’s not to say the project is unknown to transportation officials. Kevin Law, past president of the Long Island Association who just recently stepped down from the MTA board, offered his support to two Island-based projects, according to Newsday. One was to finish the Yaphank station and the other to finish Port Jeff line electrification. Law is moving on to be the new director of Empire State Development.
Anthony Figliola, a civic leader in the Three Village area who is running for the New York District 1 congressional seat on the Republican ticket, said that he has talked to railroad officials who have confirmed the feasibility study is ongoing, though he and other civic leaders have not seen it yet. He added he’s spoken to the NYS Senate transportation committee leader, and that the local state electeds are on board.
“We’re on the radar as far as Albany is concerned,” Figliola said. “These are big capital projects that take a lot of time and planning. So while you know, while it may not happen right now, we need to start planning for this for the future, because COVID will be over, and life will get back to normal.”
Some transportation advocates say the silence is a bad sign. Larry Penner, a self-described transportation historian and writer from Great Neck, spent 31 years in the U.S. Federal Transit Administration Region 2 New York Office. In a phone interview, he said riders should not expect anything on electrification until 2034, at least.
“We’re on the radar as far as Albany is concerned.”
— Anthony Figliol
He pointed to the Feb. 8 public hearing from the MTA which did not include mention of Port Jeff electrification. He also mentioned that there’s no money for the project in the MTA’s 2020-24 five-year capital plan. After the feasibility study is released, the MTA will then need to do the EPA’s environmental review process, which will allow for further FTA funding. The same amount of lead up time to acquiring a rail yard is likely to be the same.
“It’s a package deal,” Penner said. “You can’t build a storage without electrification and Federal Transit Administration funding. With this requirement that you fund a transportation improvement project, it has to go to beneficial use. So you couldn’t build a yard and have it sit there for 15 years.”
Scully said they have been in communication with MTA board members, but emphasized that timing is important for the MTA to start making moves on both electrification and Lawrence Aviation. Lansdale said the county is tasked with disposing all parts of the property, and without an agreement they may have to move on.
But another piece of the puzzle remains whether riders will return to the LIRR, especially as the pandemic continues. Many workers have realized the benefits of working from home, and many city offices remain in remote work. Though it had increased marginally in October of last year, weekday ridership on the LIRR continues to be about 50% of what it was in 2019, before the pandemic.
Penner said that problem likely overshadows any attempt to add more services on existing lines. The existing MTA projects like the ongoing $11.2 billion East Side Access to Grand Central Station promised tens of thousands of new riders when originally proposed, but with the ongoing pandemic he remains skeptical. “You want to protect and maintain the existing service before you expand service,” the transportation historian said.
Still, locals like Lefkowitz and Figliola remain optimistic about ridership bouncing back.
“As a New Yorker who lived through tragedies like 9/11 and others, I think there will be people going back from the trains,” Lefkowitz said. “I do believe that at some point, these things will get back to whatever the next transition of our future is, but I believe people will be riding the trains.”
Local and state officials have long talked about electrification of the Port Jefferson rail line, but missed deadlines and other issues may push any real project back decades. File photo
By Larry Penner
If the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, on behalf of the Long Island Rail Road, will not progress a planning study to look into the feasibility of extending electrification from Huntington to Port Jefferson, this project may never be completed in our lifetime.
Larry Penner
There is $4 million in real funding from the MTA $32 billion 2015 -2019 Five Year Capital Plan to pay for this study. The MTA previously promised that a contract would be awarded in the summer of 2019. They are now 15 months late in awarding a contract. There is no new recovery schedule for the contract award. If the MTA is unable to initiate a planning study, it may be an indication that this project will never go forward.
Estimated costs for electrification are $18 million per mile. The $260 million funding provided for electrification of the 7-mile Central Branch, running east of Hicksville on the Ronkonkoma line to Babylon is also on hold. This is due to the ongoing MTA financial crisis. This capital improvement would provide additional options for thousands of Babylon riders. They could travel from the Central Branch to Jamaica via the $2.6 billion Main Line Third Track and on to either Penn Station or future Grand Central Terminal by December 2022. Electrification of the Central Branch could also afford creation of a new north/south scoot service, running from Huntington via Hicksville and to Babylon. If results from any planning studies are positive, the next step would be the environmental review process, which would cost millions more. Funding would have to be included under the next MTA 2025 to 2029 Five Year Capital Plan.
The MTA2020 – 2040 Twenty Year Long Range Capital Needs Plan documents how much money, years or decades will be required before each MTA operating agency, including New York City Transit subway and bus, Staten Island Railway, Manhattan Bronx Surface Operating bus, MTA bus, Long Island and Metro North Rail Roads have reached a state of good repair.Categories for each agency include such assets as existing bus, subway and commuter rail fleet, stations and elevators to meet Americans with Disabilities Act and escalators, track including switches, signals and interlockings, communications, line structures, and painting, protective netting on elevated structures and bridges, line equipment including tunnel lighting and pump rooms, traction power, power substations, yards and shops and supervisory vehicles. It would be revealing if the MTA and LIRR is serious about extending electrification to Port Jefferson over this time period, it would be included within this report. Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) and the MTA promised that this document would be made public by December 2019. It is now eleven months late.
Extending electrification of the Port Jefferson branch east of Huntington has been talked about for decades. In the 1980’s, discussions took place between the MTA, LIRR, Suffolk County and various elected officials over which branch should be electrified first. The Ronkonkoma branch was selected over the Port Jefferson branch.
Without electrification east of Huntington, Port Jefferson branch riders may not have a one seat ride to the future LIRR Grand Central Terminal. Service is promised to begin by the end of December 2022. Thousands of daily LIRR riders from diesel territory branches, including those commuting from stations east of Huntington to Port Jefferson, east of East Williston to Oyster Bay, east of Babylon to Speonk and east of Ronkonkoma, will still have to change at Jamaica for travel to the future Grand Central Terminal or Atlantic Avenue to Brooklyn.
Future opportunities for funding to progress this project beyond a planning study will be under upcoming MTA 2025 – 2029, 2030 – 2034 and 2035 -2039 Five Year Capital Plans. The estimated cost will grow over time to $1 billion or more. This is necessary to pay for planning, design and engineering, environmental review, land acquisition for construction of power substations, expansion of commuter parking, potential relocation and/or consolidation of existing stations, new stations and platforms, new electric Multiple Unit car storage yard, new track, third rail and signals. From start to finish, the project could require 15 to 20 years. Based upon my past experiences on other FTA, MTA and LIRR projects, I would not be surprised if electrification of the Port Jefferson branch is not completed until 2040.
Larry Penner is a transportation advocate, historian and writer who previously worked for the Federal Transit Administration Region 2 New York Office. This included the development, review, approval and oversight for billions in capital projects and programs for the MTA, NYC Transit, Long Island Rail Road, Metro North Rail Road, MTA Bus, Suffolk County Transit, Town of Huntington HART Bus, New Jersey Transit along with 30 other transit agencies in NY & NJ.
Clothing items and other miscellaneous items left near the Port Jefferson train station. Photo by Kyle Barr
At 7 in the morning, the Port Jefferson Train Station is largely deserted. At such an early hour, the morning frost glistened as the sun peaked over the horizon. It’s 39 degrees outside. By 7:30 a.m., the few commuters who travel on the morning’s last scheduled peak train simply stuck their hands in their pockets and waited outside. They were not drawn to the warmth and seats found in the nearby station office.
Port Jeff resident Gordon Keefer arrived at around 7:25 with his small dog, a maltese, carried in the bag beside him. He walks to the station from his home and takes the train from Port Jeff to Penn Station several days a week, but he can’t even remember a time when there were benches outside of the station or on the platform. He said the ticket building gets crowded when the temperature drops low enough, but he’s never seen it be too much of a problem.
“There’s a pro and a con to that,” he said about the prospect of benches. “Otherwise you would have some of the ‘regulars’ coming by.”
Many of those who stood outside waiting for the train did not feel too concerned about the lack of seating, but many understood “why” they weren’t there. As Port Jefferson village, Brookhaven town and Suffolk County continue to look for means to help the homeless population in Upper Port and Port Jefferson Station, village officials said there wouldn’t be any outdoor seating until they can get more support from the state and MTA.
“I hate to think those who are less fortunate are not afforded the same opportunities.”
– Michael Mart
At the last Port Jefferson village meeting Jan. 6, one resident’s call for benches at the local train station led to a heated argument between him and local officials.
Michael Mart, a local firebrand, asked why the station lacked outdoor seating compared to other stations on the line. He said the lack of benches was very unfair to the elderly or infirm who want to use the station.
“I hate to think those who are less fortunate are not afforded the same opportunities,” Mart said.
According to an MTA spokesperson, the LIRR coordinated with the mayor and other local residents to not include the benches when the train station was remodeled “as they were attracting homeless and others who could compromise the safety of customers and cleanliness of the station.”
There are 12 benches in the station’s ticket office, which is open from 5 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. daily except Thursday when open until 7:15 p.m.
Mayor Margot Garant said that although the current master plan does not eliminate seating at the train station, she does not support benches that would facilitate the homeless loitering or sleeping on them. Brookhaven Town’s Quality of Life Task Force held a public meeting in December to discuss what’s currently being done, but members described the need for further legislation at every level of government that could better get the homeless population off the streets and into shelters.
“I have been doing this for 11 years, every concern [with which] people have come to me I have addressed and done everything I can do about it,” the mayor said. “But I will not tolerate the people panhandling, making beds … We have a task force of 40 people around the table, we have been working on this every other week.”
She added there have been multiple calls about homeless in the area, from those sleeping under the tracks, in planters, or in the area surrounding the parking lot. Remnants of clothes and other discarded items are evident in the gravel lot behind what was once known as the Bada Bing restaurant.
Pax Christi, a temporary homeless shelter located just feet from the station for men aged 16 and up, has come up in conversation during meetings multiple times recently. It’s one of the few shelters in the area that provides lodging for those who need it, but it can only contain people for a short time, as per state law. Residents have complained about people going outside into Pax Christi’s backyard through an unlocked security door, where they say they have harassed and heckled those standing on the platform.
The village has moved to create a higher fence between the platform and the Pax Christi building. The shelter’s director, Stephen Brazeau, told TBR News Media he has no problem with such a fence.
Part of the issue, the mayor said, is due to a lack of MTA police presence at the station, adding there are only a handful on the entire length of the northern rail lines. The MTA has said more officers will be deployed along the LIRR, but no number has yet been specified, the spokesperson said.
Sal Pitti, the president of the Port Jefferson Station/Terryville Civic Association and member of the town task force, said the problem is perhaps even more prevalent on his side of the tracks.
“I’ve gotten hundreds of complaints about benches at the train station, we don’t need them,” he said. “The task force physically told the MTA don’t put benches back there.”
“The majority of problems stem from homeless mentally ill people, people who prefer living on the street without restrictions to people who want to use the system to get out of that.”
– Barbara Sabatino
Barbara Sabatino, who along with her husband once owned the Port Jeff Army Navy surplus store before it closed in 2018, said homeless who used to occupy those nearby benches across from her shop at the station negatively impacted her business.
“The majority of problems stem from homeless mentally ill people, people who prefer living on the street without restrictions to people who want to use the system to get out of that,” she said.
Members of Suffolk County Department of Social Services have said one of the hardest tasks of trying to help the homeless is to build trust, and to convince homeless individuals to be taken to a county shelter. It takes time, patience and having the right person there at the right time.
Mart said part of the issue is too many people have the attitude they don’t wish to deal with or interact with the homeless.
“If we feel uncomfortable dealing with people that are different, then that’s another issue, and that’s what I’ve seen most up there and heard everywhere else,” he said. “To deprive everyone else of an opportunity to use the train station comfortably is unfair.”
Outside the Port Jefferson LIRR Station. The ticketing office was subject to closure as part of the LIRR'S plan. Photo by Kyle Barr.
After initially proposing to prohibit cash transactions on trains, the Long Island Rail Road announced it has decided to shelve its plan temporarily at a Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s LIRR Committee meeting Dec. 16.
Phillip Eng, LIRR president, disclosed at the meeting that the plan would be put on hold until the MTA’s new fare payment system, OMNY, is in place. The system is expected to be implemented into the LIRR and MetroNorth in early 2021.
The plan was meant to save the LIRR money by eliminating several tickets agent positions, as well as close of station ticket offices in Patchogue and Port Jefferson. This is despite recent renovations to the Port Jefferson station, which included additions to the ticket office.
Mederith Daniels, MTA spokesperson, confirmed the two ticket offices would no longer be closing in 2020. She also said the LIRR regularly reassesses customer usage of ticket windows and that the ticket offices could be considered for closure in the future.
the MTA spokesperson said these ticket offices were mainly used for conductor remittances and had a relatively small number of customers utilizing them. At Port Jeff and Patchogue – a full service ticket machine and daily ticket machine are located outside each of the station buildings.
Port Jefferson LIRR station serves 1,375 weekday riders, according to the MTA.
In November, OMNY surpassed three million taps from New York City bus and subway riders as well as riders from the Staten Island Railway.
As the saying goes, the squeaky wheel gets the grease. So, the Sierra Club, state and local elected officials in Brookhaven are making noise, calling on Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions from vehicles and target the Long Island Rail Road for electrification.
So far, the group, which held a press conference in Stony Brook Dec. 9, has accumulated more than 7,500 signatures, and hopes for 10,000 from Long Islanders by Dec. 12. It may be enough to grab the governor’s attention, but why not help expand the campaign, since people from many other communities along the line benefit from such a long-awaited move.
We ask readers, and their affiliated organizations, to join the effort. The Town of Smithtown, for example, recently announced the construction of a new apartment complex to be built across from Town Hall on Main Street in Smithtown. The appeal of that project was promoted as a good housing option for young professionals who regularly commute into Manhattan.
Town Supervisor Ed Wehrheim (R) and town council members should push for electrification. Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone (D) attended the groundbreaking to applaud that project. He and the other legislators should also appeal to the governor for electrification of the Huntington-Port Jeff line.
In Huntington, state Sen. Jim Gaughran (D-Northport) has been involved with the MTA overhaul. He is pushing for the idea, and it might help if industries and businesses along the commuter rail line organize their own letter writing campaign.
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory and Stony Brook University are both along the Port Jefferson Branch. The governor has acknowledged, when he delivered this year’s budget plan, that both institutions were key components to growing Long Island and the state’s economy, extolling his intent to make the area a premier research hub in the United States. So, why not address that slow commute with high-speed service between these research centers, New York City and the region’s airports? Let’s not forget it might also reduce the number of cars on our busy roads.
Grassroot efforts are impactful and should be regularly exercised. On this and many other issues it has a way of instilling a community’s faith in the democratic form of government.
The outcome can not only reduce emissions in the transportation sector and benefit the economy. It will also improve quality of life. For example, the 4:18 train on Dec. 10 from Stony Brook to Penn Station was 35 minutes late from Port Jeff, effectively making the journey to New York an unacceptable 2 1/2 hours. As a result two staff members had their respective evening’s entertainment truncated.
The Sierra Club has an online petition which can be found at: sc.org/55×35. To submit petitions from a letter writing campaign to the governor directly, his press office recommends using the postal address: Governor Andrew M. Cuomo, New York State Capitol, State Street and Washington Avenue, Albany, NY 12224.
The development of steel highways beginning in the early 1800s has had an enormous impact on our society, especially on Long Island, where the Long Island Rail Road was chartered in 1834. To commemorate the 185-year history of trains in Suffolk and Nassau counties, the Port Jefferson Village Center will host a new exhibit titled Railroads: Tracking the History on Long Island from Sept. 5 to Oct. 30.
Sponsored by the Port Jefferson Harbor Education and Arts Conservancy and the Incorporated Village of Port Jefferson, the unique show perfectly captures generations of railroad history with unique photos of trains, tracks and commuters from the Village of Port Jefferson archives, the Long Island Railroad Museum and the Queens Public Library’s Digital Collection.
Port Jefferson Station LIRR depot
In addition to the numerous images, the exhibit, which was curated by Port Jefferson village historian Chris Ryon, will also feature artifacts and a 50-foot time line, starting in 1834, that shows the history of a railroad that is the oldest in the country operating under its original name and with its original charter.
Currently, the train system carries over 350,000 commuters back and forth around the area each day, ranking it first among railroads in shuttling commuters.
According to Don Fisher, the president of the Railroad Museum of Long Island, laborers came from numerous countries to build the railroad. Initially, many of the workers were English and German, said Fisher. As more immigrants arrived, the workers included people of Italian and Irish descent as well as African Americans.
The railroad was originally designed to help people travel from New York to Boston. The trains brought people to Orient Point, where they took the ferry to Connecticut, which was harder to cross because many of its rivers didn’t have bridges.
Port Jefferson Station LIRR depot
One of the featured artifacts is a huge lantern that has its own serendipitous story. A resident of Wading River donated the lantern three years ago to the railroad museum. Initially, the railroad experts at the museum weren’t sure where it came from or how old it was. Later, they received a call from a resident of Toms River, New Jersey, who had a picture of a steam engine from the late 1800s. The picture features a kerosene, whale oil-burning lantern that looked incredibly similar to the one donated.
“While this is not the exact same lantern, it likely came off a locomotive like this, so we could make the story come to life,” said Fisher who suggested that the LIRR is “our railroad, which we love to hate.”
While he thinks typical commuters who ride the trains each day may not be as drawn to the exhibit, Fisher expects families with young children enthralled by Thomas the Tank Engine or by stories and photos of railroads may find numerous train treasures at the upcoming exhibit. He also expects that some senior residents will come and reminisce about everything from the horror of a snowstorm to a ride aboard a steamy train without air conditioning on a hot day to stories about friends they met aboard the train.
Port Jefferson Station LIRR depot
“The history of the Long Island Rail Road is the history of Long Island,” said Stephen Quigley, president of the Long Island Sunrise Trail Chapter of the National Railway Historical Society, who added that one of the many noteworthy railroad riders includes President Theodore Roosevelt who frequently took the LIRR to Oyster Bay while in office.
Quigley said he plans on contributing memorabilia to the exhibit, including a Dashing Dan logo, which is a popular feature from the 1950s trains. The typical Dashing Dan logo featured a commuter running with a briefcase, with half of his striped tie flying behind his head, as he’s checking his watch. The tagline on the logo was: The Route of the Dashing Commuter, which appeared above an LIRR placard.
The exhibit will also include numerous other versions of the Dashing Dan family, including a Dashing Sportsman, a Dashing Dottie and a Dashing Dan Weekend Chief, which features a commuter heading out aboard the train on the way to the beach.
Fisher and Quigley each have numerous stories about the history of the railroad and of their time aboard the trains.
In more modern times, Fisher said the Oakdale Station has featured at least two weddings. The LIRR has also been the setting for movies. The Mark Wahlberg film “Broken City,” which also stars Russell Crowe and Catherine Zeta-Jones, included scenes filmed aboard a train going back and forth from Long Island City to Montauk. During the filming, the LIRR added two extra cars, Fisher said.
Quigley recalled how one commuter, who had become friends with several other riders during his trek back and forth from Babylon to Mineola, had a baby shower on board the train.
Fisher added that many people are aware of some of the stories related to the Transcontinental Railroad, which involved moving Native Americans and gerrymandering properties. What people don’t often know, however, is that the “shenanigans with Congress and political bodies, the payoffs to get property so the railroad could be built, the sweetheart deals with companies, all happened here [on Long Island] first.”
Railroads, Fisher said, were the “dot.com of the time. Anybody with a few bucks wanted to invest. It was a hot commodity. More people worked for the railroad than any other industry. It was an economic generator.”
The community is invited to an opening reception of the new exhibit on Thursday, Sept. 12 from 6 to 9 p.m. Ryon said he hopes to have a panel discussion featuring railroad experts at the reception and is in the process of reaching out to a number of train executives.
The Port Jefferson Village Center, located at 101A East Broadway in Port Jefferson, is open seven days a week, except holidays, from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m.. For more information, call 631-802-2160.
Local and state officials have long talked about electrification of the Port Jefferson rail line, but missed deadlines and other issues may push any real project back decades. File photo
As a part of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s transformation plan announced July 24, the agency will create a task force to combat the ongoing issue of homelessness in New York City subway system with similar plans underway for the Long Island Rail Road.
The announcement comes on the heels of a recent audit done by the NYS State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli (D), which revealed that Bowery Residents’ Committee, the nonprofit provider of homeless housing and services for the MTA, had only done limited outreach to the homeless. On multiple occasions, workers appeared to intentionally close their office and isolate themselves, closing off services to clients seeking assistance, the audit found.
The newly announced task force will look at new metrics for measuring homelessness, updating subway rules and regulations to provide more clarity on what is a violation of the rules, enhanced enforcement of rules, improved coordination among agencies, the potential benefit of establishing a dedicated homeless outreach office within the MTA and additional access to resources for those in need.
According to the MTA, the homeless population in the subway system has risen 23 percent in 2019 to date.
“Homelessness is a growing problem on the subway, with a growing impact,” said Veronique Hakim, MTA managing director. “Through this task force we’re going to bring together a broad and empowered group that will help us to develop an expedited plan to keep our customers and workers safe and our trains moving — while providing much-needed resources and assistance to this vulnerable population.”
The task force will have 30 days to design a plan, focusing on housing alternatives and increased resources that MTA officials believe will lead to a significant reduction in homelessness and panhandling by the end of 2019.
Similarly, the Long Island Rail Road has faced criticism from the state comptroller on the issue of homelessness at its stations. In an audit sent to the LIRR earlier this year, DiNapoli found that the company that the agency contracts, Services for the UnderServed, were not doing an adequate job.
In the report, officials said that SUS failed to assist homeless people to the extent possible under its contract responsibilities and clients were not receiving the services they needed.
During one visit, the comptroller’s office observed SUS workers drive up to a train station parking lot and sit in the vehicle for approximately three minutes before leaving. The workers neither walked the platforms nor visited the station’s waiting room, according to the audit.
In a response to the comptroller’s finding, the LIRR responded saying that are already complying with DiNapoli’s recommendations and are implementing steps to improve oversight and performance of SUS.
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