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Southbound Cortland St Platform Reopens

Posted by
on September 6th, 2011 at 5:11 pm

Cortlandt Street Station
MTA Chairman Jay H. Walder and elected officials re-opened the southbound platform of the Cortlandt St R subway station. Photo by Metropolitan Transportation Authority / Patrick Cashin.

Just a couple of hours ago, MTA NYC Transit officially reopened the southbound side of the Cortlandt Street station for revenue service. I had planned on going to the photo op but could not due to some business matters. However the agency sent out a press release a couple of minutes ago:

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) today reopened the downtown side of the Cortlandt Street R subway station in time for the tenth anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attack. MTA Chairman and CEO Jay H. Walder was joined by Congressman Jerrold Nadler, State Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, State Senator Daniel Squadron, Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer and NYC Councilmember Margaret Chin to celebrate the occasion.

“We made a commitment to have this platform open before the tenth anniversary of 9/11 and today we are here to fulfill that commitment,” said Walder. “I’m so proud that the MTA is able to participate in another vital milestone in the revitalization of Lower Manhattan. Our employees were first responders on that tragic day; we worked tirelessly to bring the subway back just months after the attack and every day since we have been rebuilding and helping the city come back stronger than ever.”

The northbound side of the Cortlandt Street station reopened in November 2009. Now, customers will be able to access the southbound platform through two underground passageways: through the newly constructed Cortlandt Street underpass (where the Margie Hughto wall murals have been reinstalled) or the entrance from One Liberty Plaza.

MTA Capital Construction is responsible for rebuilding the station. Its president, Michael Horodniceanu, stated, “This is a significant customer benefit that we’ve been able to re-open ahead of schedule as we continue to make progress building the Fulton Street Transit Center.”

The collapse of the Twin Towers on September 11, 2001 caused significant damage to the Cortlandt Street R station as well as the Cortlandt Street station on the 1 line, which remains out of service. The R Line station remained closed for one year while damage from the collapse was repaired. The station then operated from September 15, 2002 until August 20, 2005, when it was closed again for the excavation and construction of the Dey Street Passageway. This pedestrian concourse will serve as a vital link between the Cortlandt Street station and the Fulton Street Transit Center currently under construction by MTA Capital Construction.

The $20 million dollar project to reopen the southbound Cortlandt Street platform was funded by the Port Authority and the MTA. The station’s artwork, Trade, Treasure and Travel, by artist Margie Hughto and commissioned in 1997, was undamaged in the 9/11 attacks and remained in storage until the station rehabilitation was complete. The murals are comprised of twelve thematically related hand-made bas-relief ceramic tile panels relating to finance and decorated with real and mythical creatures connected to the sea trade.

The station is served by the R during the daytime hours and the N during late nights. Cortlandt Street originally opened on January 5, 1918 as part of the BMT Broadway Line.

xoxo Transit Blogger

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Subway
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Service Diversions 09-06-11

Posted by
on September 6th, 2011 at 6:07 am

Let me first apologize if any of you had issues viewing the service diversions. The method used to display them seems to have broken out of nowhere. I will now post them in a different manner to prevent this from happening in the future. Anyhow…

I have just updated the Service Diversions by removing all of the weekend work that wrapped up an hour ago. The planned work for this week & beyond in some cases has been moved to the forefront.

I suggest printing out a copy before heading to your destination. If you have an internet capable handheld device, you can use it to access the mobile version of this site.

The diversions will have minor updates as scheduled ones drop off. Any minor updates will take place on the page as it is updated daily but will not be noted in an entry. The next complete update will be sometime on Thursday after I received the planned weekend diversions from the MTA directly.

While out traveling, if I notice or hear any changes, I will update them on the twitter feed so don’t forget to follow @TransitBlogger today which you can do by clicking the button in the sidebar.

As always, stay safe & have a wonderful week.

xoxo Transit Blogger

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Service Diversions 09-02-11

Posted by
on September 2nd, 2011 at 3:20 am

I have just updated the Service Diversions with the latest planned work (albeit light) for the upcoming Labor Day holiday weekend, next week, & beyond (in some cases).

I suggest printing out a copy before heading to your destination. If you have an internet capable handheld device, use it to access Transit Blogger’s mobile site.

While out traveling, if I notice or hear any changes, I will update them on the twitter feed so don’t forget to follow @TransitBlogger today which you can do by clicking the button in the sidebar.

The next full update will be at 5:01 AM Tuesday when all weekend/holiday work will be removed. Any minor updates will take place on the page as it is updated daily but will not be noted in an entry.

As always, stay safe & enjoy the unofficial last weekend of summer.

xoxo Transit Blogger

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NYC Buses & Subways Labor Day Service Info

Posted by
on September 2nd, 2011 at 3:14 am

Lastly here is the Labor Day weekend service plan for buses & subways in New York City along with buses in Nassau County via press release:

The New York City Subway, as well as buses in New York City and Nassau County, will operate on a Sunday schedule on Labor Day, Monday, Sept. 5. Because of the West Indian-American Day Carnival on Monday, Sept. 5, the 4 train will be making additional stops in Brooklyn, while certain subway stations will be temporarily closed and eight bus routes will be detoured around the carnival.

xoxo Transit Blogger

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LIRR Labor Day Weekend Service Plan Info

Posted by
on September 2nd, 2011 at 3:11 am

Here is the complete LIRR Labor Day weekend service plan info courtesy of a press release:

The MTA Long Island Rail Road will provide additional early-afternoon service from Penn Station on Friday, September 2 for customers planning an early getaway for the start of the Labor Day Weekend.

The LIRR will be operating on a weekend schedule on September 3rd and 4th and a Sunday/holiday schedule on September 5th. Please note that the additional Sunday afternoon Montauk Branch westbound trains from Montauk and the Hamptons will not operate on Sunday, September 4, but instead operate on Monday, September 5. The regular Monday-only return train from Montauk and the Hamptons will not run on Monday, September 5th, but instead will operate on Tuesday, September 6.

The extra early-afternoon trains will depart Penn Station starting at 2:10 PM on September 2. The extra service will include: three trains on the Port Jefferson Branch; three on the Babylon Branch; two on the Port Washington Branch; one on the Far Rockaway Branch, and two trains to Jamaica for Montauk train connections. The eastbound afternoon train from Ronkonkoma to Yaphank gets extended to Greenport on Friday, as it normally does on Fridays during the summer through Columbus Day weekend.

Extra Train Service from Penn Station, Friday, September 2

Port Jefferson Branch to Hicksville and Huntington:

2:10 PM stopping at Jamaica, Mineola, then all stops to Huntington.

2:29 PM stopping at Forest Hills, Kew Gardens, Jamaica, New Hyde Park, then all stops to Huntington.

3:24 PM stopping at Jamaica, Mineola, Westbury and Hicksville.

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Babylon Branch:

2:24 PM express to Lynbrook, then all stops to Babylon.

3:00 PM stopping at Jamaica, Rockville Centre, then all stops to Babylon.

3:31 PM express to Rockville Centre, then all stops to Babylon.

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Port Washington Branch to Great Neck:

3:18 PM stopping at Woodside, Flushing-Main Street, then all stops to Port Washington

3:40 PM stopping at Woodside, Flushing-Main Street, then all stops to Great Neck.

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Far Rockaway Branch:

3:48 PM express to Locust Manor then all stops to Far Rockaway.

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Montauk Branch (Penn Station to Jamaica with Montauk Connections):

1:45 PM to Jamaica, with a Montauk train connection.

3:58 PM to Jamaica, with a Montauk train connection.

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Ronkonkoma Branch to Greenport:

The 5:21 PM train from Ronkonkoma to Yaphank is extended on Friday making all stops to Greenport.

xoxo Transit Blogger

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