Amtrak's Long Island Dream, and Its Path to Reality

It has been over 80 years since a railroad passenger could board a train car on Long Island that gets past the Hudson River. Amtrak wants to change that, and as part of their Corridor Vision Plan, they hope to retrofit their passenger network to better reflect where people live in the 21st century and where they want to go. Many of Amtrak's proposed routes understandably introduce or expand service to places like Atlanta, Houston, Dallas, Phoenix and Las Vegas, but a direct connection between the Northeast Corridor and the over 5 million people in Queens, Nassau and Suffolk counties is also on their list.

Long Island is a natural fit for Amtrak's long-term vision, and millions of people stand to benefit from direct service along the Northeast Corridor, but the three daily roundtrips the national railroad wants to extend to and from Washington DC will only happen after intense coordination, negotiation and several other words that end with -ation. What follows is a rundown of the major issues that Amtrak and the MTA will need to resolve:

1. Clearance. The Siemens Venture trainsets which should be plying the Northeast Corridor in a few years and LIRR car fleets appear to have similar dimensions, but it's best to make sure that the Venture cars and locomotives don't wind up having their sides or roofs peeled off like a sardine tin the first time they cross under a bridge or past a platform. Any first-grader knows this, but there are a few unfortunate recent examples of nobody consulting with first graders before spending millions of dollars. More significantly, there need to be about 20 fail-safe mechanisms that tell train operators to PUT THE PANTOGRAPH DOWN before it gets lopped off at Woodside, possibly including putting a giant sign over the tracks around 48th Street in Queens that says PUT THE PANTOGRAPH DOWN in extra-bold, reflective 3,600-point type.
2. Traction power. The NEC Venture trainsets now on order will be propelled by catenary power, but will also be able to use diesel fuel. They are not going to be equipped with third rail contact shoes. Unless Amtrak is satisfied with paying for diesel when a readily available, cleaner source of power is available, these trainsets will need to be retrofitted to draw third rail power.
3. Mid-Suffolk Yard. Venture trains will be able to run in a push-pull configuration, meaning that the locomotive will permanently be at one end of the train and an operator's cab will be included at the opposite end of the trainset, allowing it to travel in either direction without the whole thing having to be turned around. This is very common practice throughout the metropolitan area, and it's a good thing too, because Mid-Suffolk Yard, the LIRR facility where Ronkonkoma Line trains lay up, doesn't have a turnaround track. (Any non-push-pull Amtrak trains which wind up on the Ronkonkoma Line will have a hard time getting off the island.) Having Amtrak trains run empty back to Sunnyside Yard and then back out to Ronknonkoma between runs would be a ludicrous waste of energy, time and money, so Amtrak is going to have to make an arrangement with the LIRR to set aside some yard space and maintenance tracks. And also either sharing crew facilities or creating separate spaces for its own use. And also storing its own parts and maintenance equipment there. And also also putting in a little money for every shared need from lights to toilet paper. Which leads us to ...
4. Paying the LIRR. You don't think the MTA, out of the goodness of its ample heart, is going to say, "Sure, Amtrak, you can use our tracks and power and stations, even though some of our riders are probably going to leave us and pay for your premium service into Penn Station, and we will have to factor your presence into all of our operations planning," do you? No. By federal law, Amtrak is guaranteed rights to the entire national rail network, but as this September 2017 presentation shows, Amtrak has dozens of operating agreements that they've negotiated with host railroads, and Amtrak reimburses them for costs incurred, sometimes including the salaries of extra employees that the host railroad has to hire due to Amtrak's presence. Reimbursement agreements can be done on a car-per-mile or train-per-mile basis, or they can be considerably more complicated when you factor in things like facility, maintenance and power usage.
5. The unions. There's some overlap between the unions that represent Amtrak and LIRR workers, such as the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers. However, work rules, jurisdictions, and coordination between different labor forces will need to be settled among all parties, including Amtrak and LIRR management.
6. Liability. What happens when someone breaks their ankle getting off an Amtrak train at an LIRR platform? If the national passenger carrier has an accident coming out of Jamaica, who's liable? Armadas of caffeine-fueled lawyers and state regulators will need to negotiate these and other related scenarios before the first Amtrak train rolls onto LIRR territory.
7. Intermediate stations. Amtrak is considering the existing Jamaica, Mineola, Hicksville and Deer Park stations as intermediate stops on the way to Ronkonkoma. Likewise, Amtrak will want ticketing equipment and (possibly) personnel at some or all of these stations, along with a commitment from the LIRR to post departure and arrival times on these stations' electronic message boards. There's also the question of parking demand and fees: A far greater share of Amtrak passengers will be overnighting at their destinations than LIRR passengers do. Will their parking rates be different, and will long-term parking sections with different rules need to be carved out of these lots and garages?
8. Scheduling. The overwhelming likelihood is that Long Island Amtrak trains will serve the Northeast Corridor down to Washington DC, although a true, extended Empire Service from Long Island to Albany or Buffalo/Niagara Falls may be another attractive option, so long as Amtrak trains stick to East River Tunnel tracks 1 and 2. (Other service combinations are less likely but theoretically possible.) But when will they run? Amtrak will want as many potential passengers as possible, making AM- and PM-peak trips likely in both directions, along with similar midday and/or evening runs. Those demands will have to be shoehorned in the LIRR's much larger post-Grand Central schedule, while not fouling up existing Amtrak timetables and runtimes beyond Long Island.
9. Cross-honoring agreements. We don't have to look far for a precedent here: Amtrak accepts CT rail Hartford Line tickets between New Haven and Springfield, MA. The LIRR is a much, much larger beast, and they may have understandable concerns about Amtrak cannibalizing some of their passengers. Likewise, as much as Amtrak wants a full train, they probably don't want local commuters hogging up every seat from Ronkonkoma to Penn Station. Both railroads will have to work out a mutually acceptable ticketing and pricing policy to avoid these pitfalls.
10. Seasonal extensions. Anyone on a Hamptons-bound summer train can tell you how popular they are, and it's conceivable that Amtrak may want some of that sweet, sweet summer revenue action. Of course, Ronkonkoma is on the Main Line, so that leaves three options: a) run out to Riverhead and contract out for connecting bus service to the Hamptons, b) run a special train or two daily via the Central Branch and Montauk Line (which opens up a whole other bunch of storage, operation and staffing issues), or c) ignore the South Fork completely and drum up the North Fork's considerable charms and beauty by running a train out to Greenport.

Long Island never should have wound up in the situation it's in now, cut off from a one-seat ride to the national passenger rail network. Through-running commuter service via Penn Station is part of the solution, but Amtrak's mission to connect more of the country encompasses a larger vision. Despite the many roadblocks described above, it is worth everyone's time and effort to surmount them. A healthier, more sustainable and more economically vibrant Long Island awaits.

-- The above article is a personal opinion, and does not reflect the policies of any city or state agency that I have worked for. Also, put the pantograph down.