As Hurricane Sandy approaches, Metro-North Railroad’s last trains on all lines will depart at approximately 7 p.m. today. This will allow customers to safely reach their final destinations, either northbound or southbound, and to suspend service in an orderly manner.
The service suspension will allow all trains en route to complete their runs so that customers are not stranded unexpectedly. Metro-North urges its customers not wait until the last train to get home. Until the suspension is complete, Metro-North will cross-honor New York City Transit MetroCards to stops in the Bronx to facilitate a safe trip home. The Metro-North suspension also will affect all service on Amtrak’s Northeast Corridor, which operates on Metro-North’s New Haven Line from New Rochelle to New Haven.
Service also will be suspended on Metro-North’s Port Jervis Line west of the Hudson River. Pascack Valley line service will be determined by NJTRANSIT. Customers should visit njtransit.com for service status information.
One train that has been cancelled prior to tonight’s service suspension is the Train to the Game, Metro-North’s direct service from New Haven to the 1 p.m. Jets-Dolphins game at MetLife stadium at the Meadowlands Sports Complex in New Jersey. The 8: 48 a.m. out of New Haven has been cancelled as has the return trip that leaves the Meadowlands at 4:48 p.m.
Grand Central Terminal, including its shops and restaurants, and all outlying Metro-North station buildings will be closed for the duration of the service suspension.
In preparation for the brunt of the storm, train equipment will be moved out of low-lying locations known to be prone to flooding, such as the east end of the yard in New Haven and Highbridge and Mott Haven yards in the Bronx. As the storm approaches, Metro-North has secured its infrastructure by moving trucks, and equipment such as backhoes, cranes and bulldozers, to higher ground. This includes bringing trains into Grand Central Terminal for shelter.
In addition, the wooden crossing gates at grade crossings, which are susceptible to high winds, will been removed and secured. However, people should be aware that work trains and patrol trains may still be operating and approach all grade crossings with caution.
Also, a service suspension does not mean that power will be off to the third rail or overhead catenary wires on the New Haven Line. All tracks and wires will remain energized. All routine track work and capital construction work has been suspended and all construction sites have been secured.
Parking lots that usually flood, such as the ones at White Plains and Beacon’s riverside lot, are barricaded. Connecting ferry service at Beacon and Ossining is suspended. The Hudson RailLink that serves Spuyten Duyvil and Riverdale is suspended.
As Sandy bears down on the region, Metro-North also is taking steps to put personnel and equipment in place to be ready to deal with the cleanup after the worst of the storm has passed.
Many employees have been asked to shelter at a Metro-North shop or facility so they can start helping restore services as soon as the storm has passed. If the railroad did not ask for this extraordinary sacrifice, many employees would be unable to report for duty because of trees down, roads blocked or flooded, power outages and other problems likely to arise.
Metro-North will provide information around the clock. Customers should visit the MTA website, www.mta.info, listen to the latest traffic reports and sign up for free e-mail alerts for updates. Customers can also contact the Metro-North Customer Information Center by calling 511, the New York State Travel Information Line, and say: Metro-North Railroad. If you are deaf or hard of hearing, use your preferred relay service provider for the free 711 relay to reach Metro-North at 511. For customers outside New York State, call toll free 877-690-5114.
The following is a list of the last trains that will operate on Sunday before the system-wide suspension:
Hudson Line
-6:50 PM train from Grand Central to Poughkeepsie arriving 8:32 PM
-6:59 PM train from Grand Central to Croton-Harmon arriving 7:57 PM (this train is normally an express but will make all local stops from Yankees-E. 153rd Street to Croton-Harmon)
-6:35 PM train from Poughkeepsie to Grand Central arriving at 8:22 PM
-7:00 PM train from Croton-Harmon to Grand Central arriving at 8:07 PM
Harlem Line
-6:48 PM train from Grand Central to Southeast arriving at 8:18 PM
-6:55 PM train from Grand Central to North White Plains arriving at 7:43 PM (This is normally a Saturday-only train)
-7:06 PM train from North White Plains to Grand Central arriving at 7:59 PM
-7:13 PM train from Southeast to Grand Central arriving at 8:40 PM
-6:55 PM train from Wassaic to Grand Central arriving at 9:05 PM
New Haven Line
-7:07 PM train from Grand Central to New Haven arriving at 8:59 PM
-7:10 PM train from Grand Central to Stamford arriving at 8:17 PM
-6:53 PM train from New Haven to Grand Central arriving at 8:44 PM
-7:03 PM train from Stamford to Grand Central arriving at 8:09 PM
New Canaan, Danbury and Waterbury Branch customers: all branch line train service will end with the last train operating prior to the 7 PM suspension. The last Amtrak trains to operate on the New Haven Line will be 7:05 PM Acela out of Penn Station, N.Y. and the 7:18 PM southbound out of New Haven.
Port Jervis Line
-6:15 PM train from Hoboken to Port Jervis arriving at 8:23 PM
-5:27 PM train from Port Jervis to Hoboken arriving at 7:38 PM
Pascack Valley Line customers should contact NJTRANSIT for information.
