Park Avenue Viaduct 5/17 (Was: Fire stops all trains...)

[roysmith]

This looks pretty ugly. http://nyti.ms/1soSFw8" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;. We'll see how things look in the morning. Could be pretty grim for Metro North commuters.

[DutchRailnut]

fire is out, but now comes inspection of structure and possible cables under viaduct.

[Dick H]

Service in and out of GCT shut down for the evening 5/17 by fire.

http://www.mta.info/mnr" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

More details here
http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2016/05/17/ ... orth-fire/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[philipmartin]

Thank you for posting this. It's surprising to see that train going through the smoke. It sounds as though service to and from Grand Central will be impacted for some time while the estructure at 118 street is rebuilt.
For a few days, anyhow.

[roysmith]

As of this morning, two tracks back in service, with train speed limited to 30 MPH, and running a Saturday schedule. Some quotes from the NY Times this morning:

A beam and support buttresses were bent

“The heat of the fire was extreme,” Mr. Cuomo said, adding that it was so intense that firefighters could hear bolts popping from the beams.

[shlustig]

We had a similar situation way back in the 1970's, but fortunately it was on a weekend.

Bodega under the viaduct burned in the afternoon; Pete Hansen and I had the weekend duty but ended up with everybody from John Lotz on down called in.
There was heat damage to the structure, and Monday AM rush was somewhat slower than normal.

[Ridgefielder]

I completely disagree with the people who said "there was no information." I was on the 7:05 to North White last night. Train was halted before we were clear of the platform on Track 111. The crew came over the PA and said first it was "trouble up above" and we were halted. We backed down to the platform again, conductor came on the PA again and said there was a "smoke condition" somewhere between GCT and 125th Street, the FDNY and NYPD were on the scene, and all trains were being held. Then he popped the doors. I walked up to the concourse, and they were announcing "no trains into or out of Grand Central at this time" over the station PA-- at which point, figuring something was seriously sideways, I called the wife, told her to meet me at Van Cortlandt Park, and headed for the Shuttle and the #1 Train.

Some people seem to expect minute-by-minute situation reports, which is ridiculous.

[roysmith]

Also from today's NY TImes:

The fire severely damaged a column that supports the center tracks and that would take some time to repair, he said. The support structures on the outside tracks were stable, he said, allowing the authority to provide limited service.

Saturday schedule in effect for the rest of this week. Apparently, part of the reason for the fire being so intense was the storage of flammable chemicals and propane tanks in a garden shop under the viaduct.

[nitro878]

As a customer I don't expect up to the minute updates, but I do hope for a sense of direction. Not everyone is aware of the alternate routes, and it repeatedly seems like there is a lack of clarity. Last night on the 7:01 to New Canaan, customers were told to head to NYP to take Amtrak, yet the last train to Connecticut had already passed. Customers were then directed to take a subway to Fordham, but then the announcement issued by Metro-North was to board trains on the NHL starting at Woodlawn.

It baffles me that such a large agency seems to have a lack of coordinated response. I'm sure there is something in place, but from a customer perspective, it never seems like there is either enough equipment or coordination readily available to adequately respond to incidents of this magnitude in a timely manner.

[truck6018]

.......but from a customer perspective, it never seems like there is either enough equipment or coordination readily available to adequately respond to incidents of this magnitude in a timely manner.

While I understand what you are saying, you also have to consider the time of day this happened. At 7:00 both equipment and crews are committed in providing normal rush hour service. Once this happened, crews are separated from where they are supposed to go and where they need to be. Complicating matters is many crews were working towards the end of their shift and management has to figure out how much longer crews can work as there is a federal mandate that train crews can not work more than 12 hours (with few exceptions).

Even the best thought out preplan would be flawed as different situations at different times of day would require a different plan of action. Example, at 1 in the afternoon, much of the equipment is in the yard for servicing while in this situation most of the equipment is on the road. Another example, at 7 in the morning most of the crews are fresh while 7 at night many are coming close to outlawing.

[Jeff Smith]

http://www.mta.info/#slider" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Metro-North Service Alert
Metro-North has restored limited service to and from Grand Central Terminal, hours after a massive four-alarm fire underneath Metro-North's Park Avenue Viaduct in Manhattan required a service suspension. Customers should anticipate delays and extremely crowded conditions, and are encouraged to consider working from home or finding alternative transportation. Metro-North personnel continue to make repairs to a section of the viaduct, which requires the two inside tracks to remain out of service. Trains will be able to safely operate on the two outside track of the viaduct with train speeds reduced from 60 mph to 30 mph.

[Jeff Smith]

http://www.mta.info/mnr" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Special Service Notices
UPDATE: A Saturday schedule remains in effect until further notice for Wednesday into and out of Grand Central Terminal following a massive four alarm fire Tuesday night at a local business at 118th Street under Metro-North Railroad's Park Avenue Viaduct.

Harlem-125th Street Station Customers: Between 5 pm and 8 pm tonight, all inbound trains and some outbound express trains will not make stops at Harlem-125th Street Station in order to relieve congestion in the affected area. Please listen for announcements. See service alternatives and more details.

[Jeff Smith]

So, New Haven trains are once again stopping at Woodlawn! That makes sense; it's not a bad walk up the hill to 233rd and the 2. Years ago, New Haven trains stopped there before moving to Fordham. And I assume Fordham remains as busy as ever, so why divert more crowds there.

http://web.mta.info/supplemental/mnr/mn ... _info.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

UPDATE: A Saturday Schedule Remains In Effect Into and Out of Grand Central Terminal For Wednesday, May 18

Limited train service continues into and out of Grand Central Terminal following a massive four-alarm fire Tuesday night at a local business at 118th Street under Metro-North Railroad's Park Avenue Viaduct.

Harlem-125th Street Station Customers: Between 5 pm and 8 pm tonight, all inbound trains--as well as some outbound express trains--will not make stops at Harlem-125th Street Station in order to relieve congestion in the affected area. Please listen for announcements.

Customers are encouraged to take a subway connection as an alternate service in and out of New York City as follows:

Hudson Line customers can take train service to/from Yankees-East 153rd Street with subway connections to the Lexington Ave. 4 train, D train or the 1 train at 225 St-Marble Hill Station.

Harlem Line customers can take train service to/from Wakefield Station with subway connections to the 2 train at 241st Street.

New Haven Line customers can take train service to/from Woodlawn Station with subway connections to 2 train and 5 train at 233rd Street.

NYC Transit is cross-honoring Metro-North tickets at Grand Central, Harlem-125th Street and the Bronx stations.

Hudson Line customers: NJ TRANSIT is cross-honoring Hudson Line tickets on Port Jervis and Pascack Valley Line trains.

Until further notice, a Saturday schedule will remain in effect for Wednesday on all three lines and customers should refer to our schedules page or a timetable for schedule information.

Between 5 pm and 8 pm, customers should expect delays and extremely crowded conditions. As such, customers are encouraged to stagger their departures out of Grand Central.

Metro-North crews are working around the clock to make temporary repairs to a section of the viaduct which requires the two inside tracks to remain out of service. Trains are safely operating on the two outside tracks of the viaduct with train speeds reduced from 60 mph to a maximum allowable speed of 30 mph.

As soon as the temporary repairs are completed, Metro-North will perform structural tests and tests of train movement over the viaduct. If testing proves successful, restricted speed train service could then resume over the tracks that are currently out of service. The construction and testing process is expected to take 24 to 48 hours to complete.

Customers should continue to check this website and news media for any updates, and listen for announcements at stations.

[Rockingham Racer]

Jeff Smith wrote:

So, New Haven trains are once again stopping at Woodlawn! That makes sense; it's not a bad walk up the hill to 233rd and the 2. Years ago, New Haven trains stopped there before moving to Fordham. And I assume Fordham remains as busy as ever, so why divert more crowds there.


It's a bad walk up the hill if you're physically challenged, though. Another option is get the BX 16 bus to either the # 4 Woodlawn-Jerome or go to the end of the line and get the D train if you're going to the West Side of Manhattan. Even then one has to negotiate the stairs at the M-N Woodlawn station to get up to 233rd St.

[Jeff Smith]

Finally, about the repairs: http://www.mta.info/news/2016/05/18/met ... ue-viaduct" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Metro-North Repairs Park Avenue Viaduct
Select Language​▼
May 18th, 2016

In order to restore full train service as quickly as possible, MTA Metro-North Railroad crews are working around the clock to make temporary repairs to the railroad’s Park Avenue Viaduct in Manhattan that was damaged by a four-alarm fire underneath the viaduct on Tuesday evening.
The fire caused structural damage to one steel supporting column and three adjacent horizontal steel girders that run east-west along the width of the underside of the viaduct and are known in engineering terminology as floor beam stringers. Because of the structural damage, Metro-North has taken the inside two of the viaduct’s four tracks out of service, and put a speed restriction in place on the two outside tracks.
As a result of the track restrictions, Metro-North is operating on a Saturday schedule until further notice.
Scores of workers from Metro-North’s engineering division are installing six temporary steel columns that will surround the damaged column and connect to it and to one another. Once in place, the seven columns, braced together, will function as a single structure that will bear the weight of the overhead viaduct until permanent repairs can be put in place.
As soon as the temporary repairs are completed, Metro-North will perform structural tests including the impact of train movement over the viaduct. If testing proves successful, restricted speed train service could then resume over the tracks that are currently out of service. The construction and testing process is expected to take 24 to 48 hours to complete.
The fire did not cause any damage to Metro-North’s tracks, signals, or third rail power systems. The damaged column, located near the centerline of the viaduct, is an older, multi-piece “built-up” column design notable for its lattice-like steel appearance; portions of the column date to the initial construction of the viaduct in the 19th century. Columns on the east and west sides of the viaduct, which were put in place by Metro-North in the 1990s, are a newer design consisting of single monolithic blocks; they were not damaged by the fire