Third Track Construction Begins In Floral Park
If the area around the Floral Park train station is starting to look a little different, it’s because the preliminary work for the Long Island Rail Road Third Track project has officially begun in the village.
The Floral Park Station, which was constructed in 1878 and was converted to an elevated station in 1960, serves approximately 3,000 customers each weekday and services both the Main Line and Hempstead branches.
This month, village residents will see crews begin heavy construction on the west side of South Tyson Avenue as well as the parking area under the viaduct. The parking area, which consists of 18 interior parking spaces that are under the viaduct, and four parking spaces on the west side of Tyson Avenue will temporarily be closed.
The South Tyson Avenue Bridge, which has been in service since 1958, will be modified with a new two-track bay bridge that will be installed as a part of the LIRR Expansion Project. The low-hanging bridge has been the site of many accidents over the years by trucks striking the bridge—resulting in train delays in both directions. In 2016 there were 20 bridge strikes within Nassau County—illustrating the need to improve the safety and reliability for vehicles and LIRR passengers by replacing low-hanging bridges. The height of the South Tyson Avenue Bridge is 12-feet, nine inches. The new bridge’s height, which will be raised to 14-feet, will allow trucks to safely pass underneath.
The South Tyson Avenue Bridge will be replaced using the method that was successfully employed at LIRR’s Post Avenue Bridge in Westbury, which was completed in a single weekend last year.
3TC, the project’s contractors, has provided 30 replacement parking spots for Floral Park railroad permit holders at the Storage Post facility that is located at 50 Carnation Ave. According to the village, permit holders can enter the parking lot on Lily Street where spots come on a first-come, first-served basis.
Pedestrian access will be closed on the west side of Tyson Avenue under the viaduct and will be directed to the east side of the sidewalk, which will remain open. The construction team will provide cones, flagmen and signage at the work site to minimize interruptions and to direct pedestrians and traffic. Two additional crossing guards will be onsite to further ensure everyone’s safety.
Close to the vicinity of the construction is John Lewis Childs Elementary School, which is in the Floral Park Bellerose School District. In a letter sent out to parents, the school district said that they were assured that construction will be conducted behind temporary plywood walls to help abate noise and that they anticipate that all children, who take the school bus, will be transported to school on time.
“However, in the event that the analyses of project traffic engineers proves inaccurate, we have plans to adjust bus routes to save travel time for our students,” stated the letter. “We were advised that when road closures begin at Covert Avenue, vehicles traveling northbound on Covert Avenue will be rerouted east onto Stewart Avenue and west onto Tulip Avenue.”
Due to heavy volume of traffic that is anticipated, it will take much longer to drive throughout the village.
As part of the LIRR Expansion and based on community feedback, new ADA-compliant elevators will be implemented as well.
