MTA LIRR Double Track Project - Ronkonkoma to Farmingdale

Some observations today during my travels.
The third rail installation appears to have reached the Commack Road crossing.
Track construction crews are still working the ROW between Commack Road and Little East Neck Road crossing. A ballast regulator has joined the 2 tampers, track stabilizer and track mobile with the HERZOG ballast cars.
The new ROW is still separated just east of the Carll's Path crossing. I was only able to get a quick look but it looks like they installed a switch and track from the existing ROW leading to the new entrance of the Astro stone yard so the NY&A can service them. A Pettibone rail crane towing a small blue ballast dump car was being loaded from a ballast pile in the P.C. Richards parking lot.
Still a lot of construction going on at the Wyandanch station. Its going to be quite impressive when its all finished.
There is a good size pile of new third rail stored in the construction yard in Wyandanch.
Construction crews were installing the third rail supports along the stretch of ROW between the Little East Neck Road and the Wellwood Road crossings. Didn't look like the supports had been installed between Straight Path and Little East Neck Road crossings though.
All construction seems to have come to a halt at the Pinelawn station unless its just going to be 2 platforms with no pedestrian overpass or shelter.

Updates on the project:

-Third rail has been laid from Pond Road to just East of where CI2 was, Central Islip to just East of Brentwood, JS to DK, and Little East Neck Road to Wellwood Avenue.
-CI2 switch is gone, it's now two tracks, but Track 1 is not fully connected.
-Brentwood and Deer Park's station buildings have been gutted and are undergoing renovation.
-Pedestal signals installed at KO1
-Eastern 6 car lengths of the existing Wyandanch platform have been laid with hand railing, and almost half of the new platform.
-Pinelawn's new platform is completed with ramp, but does not have any railing, lights or signs since the track is not ready.

AFAIK, "Pedestal Signals" are position light signals. (sometimes called "domino signals" with two lights per position.

I don't know what the LIRR term for a ground mounted color-light signal is, especially the RAS signals.

Matt, are the new pedestal signals at KO1 pos-light or color signals?

And Dave, I believe LIRR calls ground-mounted (dwarf) pos-light sig's low home signals. Not sure if they have another name for pedestal or dwarf color signals.

I only got a look at the back, Edward was photographing to the West at Ocean Avenue. The signals are same ones installed at the new CI Interlocking, so I guess they would be dwarf/home signals. Two of them were installed and they face towards the engineer as he is goes Eastbound to terminate at Ronkonkoma. Only question I have is when will the new track one be officially connected at CI2? My best bet is when they raze the signal gantry just like they did with CI1.

Does anyone know what is going on with the elevators at Ronkonkoma? A week ago the elevator for Platform B (island platform) was out due to renovation. Last week, Platform A's elevator is out of service, are they refurbishing them?

I'm also aware that the crews were also busy at Shinnecock Hills by erecting the temporary platform and pedestrian bridge for the fans.

While viewing pictures of the KO double track project, I can't help but notice some of the tracks literally look like squiggly lines. Is this just part of the building process and there’s a certain machine that rolls over the rails to straighten them out? I know some of these pictures are taken with a long lens and distance compression adds to the effect but...

Head-end View wrote:Matt, are the new pedestal signals at KO1 pos-light or color signals?

And Dave, I believe LIRR calls ground-mounted (dwarf) pos-light sig's low home signals. Not sure if they have another name for pedestal or dwarf color signals.

Agree that dwarves are low homes, and they imply slow speed moves (Slow Clear, Slow Approach) Pedestals are reduced scale, but still full home signals. I found the PRR drawing that defines them as "pedestal", PRR "Type 4102" it-s PRR S-410-D

http://prr.railfan.net/signalstandards/ ... y=1&rr=all

mjd13076 wrote:While viewing pictures of the KO double track project, I can't help but notice some of the tracks literally look like squiggly lines. Is this just part of the building process and there’s a certain machine that rolls over the rails to straighten them out? I know some of these pictures are taken with a long lens and distance compression adds to the effect but...

They haven't been set yet, that's why they look squiggly. A photo taken of the site of the former switch of CI2 shows the siding connected to the new second track but looks zig-zagged. That just means that work has to be done by leveling the ballast underneath to create embankment. The rails will be straightened out by workers, not rail vehicles.

I think they will use a tamping / lining machine to straighten out that is now just roughed-in.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tamping_machine

I think there is one of these out east of Farmingdale right now actually, or something similar.

June 2 & 3: Buses Replace Weekend Trains between Ronkonkoma & Hicksville

To accommodate trackwork related to the LIRR’s Double Track Project, buses will replace trains between Ronkonkoma and Hicksville Saturday, June 2 and Sunday, June 3. The first westbound bus departs Ronkonkoma at 12:02 AM. The first eastbound bus departs Hicksville at 12:59 AM. Service will be affected as follows:

Westbound

Customers at stations Ronkonkoma through Bethpage will board buses to Hicksville up to 45 minutes earlier than normal train times, then transfer to westbound trains.
Customers at stations Greenport through Medford will board buses at Ronkonkoma and ride to Hicksville, where train service will resume.
Customers will arrive at western terminals 1 hour later than normal.

Eastbound

Customers traveling to stations Bethpage through Ronkonkoma will transfer to buses at Hicksville. Plan for 46 minutes of added travel time.
Departure times for trains that provide connecting service to Greenport have been adjusted:
Customers who normally take the 2:53 AM train from Penn to Ronkonkoma will transfer at Hicksville for a bus that will make all local stops to Greenport.
Customers who normally take the 8:14 AM and the 1:14 PM trains from Penn to Ronkonkoma for connecting service to Greenport will depart from Penn Station 1 hour earlier than normal, at 7:12 AM and 12:12 PM.

My guess is connecting and adding embankment to the CI2 sight using the tamping/lining equipment, connection of track in Ronkonkoma, and possibly Brentwood work?

mjd13076 wrote:While viewing pictures of the KO double track project, I can't help but notice some of the tracks literally look like squiggly lines. Is this just part of the building process and there’s a certain machine that rolls over the rails to straighten them out? I know some of these pictures are taken with a long lens and distance compression adds to the effect but...

From what I've seen the crews drop layers of ballast using a Trackmobile and 4 Herzog ballast cars similar to these, although at a much slower pace. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qRgI9gCpXdY" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Then a tie tamper similar to this:
Tie tamper. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rxZ4qwkfkyQ" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Then a track stabilizer similar to this:
Track stabilizer. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qs59-FHi-Gs" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
The process continues over and over, dumping ballast, tamping and stabilizing, building up the roadbed.
When the tamping and stabilizing is done the ballast regulator does the final smoothing. A ballast regulator has been working the grade between Wyandanch and the Deer Park Ave overpass for the last 2 days.
Ballast regulator. A tie tamper is first then the regulator is at the end of the video. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4sVpJDh1OgQ" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Having never seen any of these machines in person it has been interesting watching the process tranforming just track and ties laying on bare ground to a finished ROW.

From Ronkonkoma to Farmingdale:

1.) Connect the new second track at KO Interlocking (which has to be reconfigured).
2.) Connect and stabilize the track at the former site of CI2.
3.) Eliminate BRENT and connect the second track to Track 2 at Brentwood.
4.) Eliminate the current dividing switch at JS, since JS will be two crossovers. The new switches will be slightly West of the current one.
5.) Installation of third rail all the way to Little East Neck Road.
6.) Completion of platform facilities at Wyandanch (full 12-car new platform next to the new track, and a rehabilitated 6-car segment of the current. Staircases next to elevators to the pedestrian bridge).
7.) Signal installation at DANCH and new signals at JS.
8.) New fence to be erected to the North of the ROW at Pinelawn.
9.) Completion of platform facilities at Pinelawn.
10.) Installation of third rail from Wellwood Avenue to FARM (which has to be reconfigured).
11.) Second track to be connected at FARM. (which has to be reconfigured).

Edward Hand's photos show the following:

1.) At Ronkonkoma and KO Interlocking, Track 2 is BARRICADED, Tri-Color signals are wrapped.
2.) Second track has been electrified from Pond Road to just before the former turnout switch at CI2, new crossover switch in between Pond and Ocean electrified.
3.) Ballast was added to the former turnout switch site and the current track from 1987 connected to the new track (not ready)
4.) BRENT is still untouched.
5.) A new signal being installed at Deer Park near Executive Drive for Pineaire. Something with a new hut.
6.) The new second track at JS has been straightened with two crossovers installed.
7.) Third rail has been installed from the JS switches to the Deer Park Avenue bridge.
8.) Temporary DK is gone.
9.) The Western half of Wyandanch's current platform has been torn down along with the station building.
10.) The newly rehabilitated Eastern half of Wyandanch's current platform is in service with a canopy towards the center. Today it went into service (first 6 cars will not platform on a WB train, last 6 will not platform on an EB).
11.) No photos were taken at Pinelawn.

Wyandanch is now head 6 cars in either direction.

Project update June 20th, 2018:

1.) As far as I know the second track with the BARRICADE Octagon still has it.
2.) Ronkonkoma's Platform A elevator is being renovated, just like the Platform B was earlier.
3.) The new second track at CI2 has been connected, graded, and has the new third rail connected to the existing third rail.
4.) BRENT still is not connected, but the station buildings continue being renovated.
5.) Temporary DK still there.
6.) Third rail has been installed all the way to Wyandanch.
7.) Rail and Tie cleaner vehicles continue going along.
8.) Ballast is being evened out between Straight Path and Little East Neck Road.
9.) Third rail has not been installed between the above-mentioned grade crossings.
10.) The new DANCH Interlocking is becoming clearer with the turnover switches becoming crossovers.

It's worthy to note that Edward DID NOT photograph JS, but between Commack Road and Carll's Path the third rail has not been laid. That area along with the stretch that includes DANCH Interlocking are the only ones that lack the third rail. The CI2 signal gantry is still standing as well as the gantry just West of Ronkonkoma.