Atlantic Branch

Atlantic Branch
Overview
Type Commuter rail
System Long Island Rail Road
Status Operational
Locale Western Long Island, New York, USA
Termini Atlantic Terminal
Valley Stream
Stations 8 passenger, 1 employee-only
Services
  Atlantic Branch
(City Terminal Zone)
  Far Rockaway Branch
  Long Beach Branch
  Belmont Park Branch
Operation
Opened 1836 (west of Jamaica)
1867 (east of Jamaica)
Owner Long Island Rail Road
Operator(s) Metropolitan Transportation Authority
Technical
Track gauge 4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm)
Electrification 750 V (DC) third rail
Route map
Legend
0.0 Atlantic Terminal
Rises onto Atlantic Avenue Viaduct
1.6 Nostrand Avenue
4.0 East New York
Warwick Street closed 1939
Autumn Avenue closed 1939
Union Course closed 1939
Woodhaven closed 1939
Woodhaven Junction closed 1976
Clarenceville closed 1939
Morris Park closed 1939
Boland's Landing LIRR employees only
Dunton closed 1939
Montauk Branch
Morris Park Facility LIRR employees only
Main Line
AirTrain JFK Zone 1/Zone 3
9.6 Jamaica
Main Line
Montauk Branch
South Street closed 1922
Cedar Manor closed 1959
11.7 Locust Manor
Higbie Avenue closed 1960
13.1 Laurelton
Montauk Branch
13.8 Rosedale
Queens/Nassau County border Zone 3/Zone 4
15.7 Valley Stream
Far Rockaway Branch
West Hempstead Branch
Long Beach Branch

Distances shown in miles from Pennsylvania Station.

The Atlantic Branch is an electrified rail line owned and operated by the Long Island Rail Road in the U.S. state of New York. It is the only LIRR line that runs in the borough of Brooklyn.

Description

Partly underground and partly elevated, the Atlantic Branch runs from Atlantic Terminal in Downtown Brooklyn to Valley Stream, in Nassau County, where it becomes the two-track Long Beach Branch with the two-track Far Rockaway Branch splitting southward just east of the Valley Stream station.

The section between Atlantic Terminal and Bedford Avenue is underground along Atlantic Avenue. From there the line is elevated above the median of Atlantic Avenue to Dewey Place (with a stop at Nostrand Avenue) before returning underground.

At East New York the line rises to street level to cross above the north-south, freight only Bay Ridge Branch, then descends once more to Jamaica. Between East New York and Jamaica, the intact but closed station at Woodhaven Junction is visible.

At 121st Street in Richmond Hill, Queens, the line rises to street level and passes the Morris Park Facility before joining the elevated Main Line at Jamaica.

It turns southeast immediately east of Jamaica, ducking beneath the eastward Main Line tracks. It curves parallel to the Montauk Branch after a few miles and continues next to it to Valley Interlocking in Valley Stream.

Atlantic Terminal saw completion in 2010 of $93 million in renovations, including a new entry pavilion.[1]

History

The current Atlantic Branch is the successor to two separate lines: the Brooklyn and Jamaica Railroad (opened 1836) along Atlantic Avenue from Flatbush Avenue to Jamaica, and the South Side Railroad of Long Island (opened 1867) from Jamaica to Valley Stream.

Woodhaven Junction power substation

Atlantic Terminal to Jamaica

The Brooklyn and Jamaica Railroad opened the line from South Ferry to what is now 151st Street in Jamaica on April 18, 1836.

Initially the line turned halfway between Classon and Franklin Avenues, running halfway between Herkimer Street and Schuyler Street (now Atlantic Avenue) along the line of the present Herkimer Place. It turned slightly to the southeast near Howard Avenue, crossing the centerline of Schuyler Street about one-third of the way between Hopkinson Avenue (Thomas Boyland Street) and Paca Avenue (Rockaway Avenue). It crossed into the town of New Lots just beyond Stone Avenue (Mother Gaston Boulevard).[2]

The Atlantic Branch was one of the first lines in the LIRR system slated to be electrified. In anticipation of this the entire line to Jamaica was to be grade separated. Between 1903 and 1905 the line was depressed into a tunnel from Flatbush Avenue to Bedford Avenue, then placed on an elevated viaduct from Bedford Avenue to Ralph Avenue then depressed back into a tunnel until Manhattan Crossing located just west of East New York station. At East New York the line returned to grade level then rose onto another elevated viaduct until Atkins Ave. The rest of the line from Atkins Ave to Morris Park located just west of Jamaica remained at grade level along Atlantic Avenue with numerous grade crossings with the anticipation of grade separating the line later on. Additionally a new terminal and yard was built at Flatbush and Atlantic Avenues. Electric service commenced in 1905 with the line consisting of two tracks between Flatbush Avenue and Woodhaven Junction and four tracks beyond that point to Jamaica.

LIRR then ran two services along the line: the traditional commuter type services from points on eastern Long Island to Flatbush Avenue, along with what was called the "local" rapid transit type service, frequent elevated/subway like service at lower fare between Flatbush Ave and Queens Village (although referred to as a rapid transit type service, standard LIRR cars were used, and the service was operated by railroad rules, as opposed to rapid transit). At this time the line from Jamaica to East New York had many more stations along Atlantic Avenue spaced at closer intervals, much like an elevated/subway rapid transit line. The four tracks between Jamaica and Woodhaven Junction lent itself to this service with rapid transit trains using the outer two tracks while commuter trains used the inner two tracks.

In November 1925 25 "local" trains left Brooklyn each weekday for Queens Village, 12 more ran to Hillside, and 16 more ran to Jamaica. All trains made all stops, 15 of them west of Queens Village. Fare was probably 10 cents for 13 miles Queens Village to Brooklyn, compared to about 40 cents on "express" LIRR trains making six or seven stops (but a monthly ticket good on any train was $7.10).

For a while the LIRR operated joint service along the Atlantic Branch with the Brooklyn Rapid Transit company (BRT) consisting of two connections, one with the Fifth Ave El at Flatbush Avenue, and another with the Broadway and Lexington Avenue els with a connection built at Chestnut Street in Brooklyn. This allowed BRT trains to access the Rockaways and Manhattan Beach, while affording the LIRR a connection into Manhattan to the BRT terminal located at Park Row over the Brooklyn Bridge (this service predated the opening of the East River Tunnels to Penn Station). Nevertheless the Interstate Commerce Commission ended this service in 1916 when they classified different operating standards between rapid transit trains and regular heavy rail railroads which the LIRR was classified as.

By the late 1930s it was clear that the rest of the line needed to be grade separated. Much of the surrounding area along Atlantic Avenue in Ozone Park and Richmond Hill began their suburban development leading to more traffic along Atlantic Avenue which was plagued by the lines many grade crossings. The City of New York along with the LIRR thus allocated the funds to depress the rest of the line from Morris Park to East New York in a tunnel. Building of the tunnel commenced in 1939 (although plans to build the tunnel date back to 1893) with two of the line's four tracks being pulled out of service and the rapid transit service being discontinued.

On December 28, 1942[3] the tunnel was completed and opened with the two remaining at-grade tracks pulled out of service. Around this time Atlantic Avenue was raised over the East New York station via a viaduct that separated the road and the railroad. The elevated trestle from East New York to Atkins Avenue was also demolished as it had been included in the new tunnel to Jamaica. Only one station was included in the new tunnel: Woodhaven Junction, where the Atlantic Branch crossed under the Rockaway Beach Branch. An interlocking and track connection was built just west of the Woodhaven Junction station to connect the two lines, but these closed after the abandonment of the Rockaway Beach Branch between 1955 and 1962.

Replacement of the Atlantic Avenue Viaduct at Nostrand Avenue in July 2011.

Jamaica to Valley Stream

The portion east of Jamaica was opened by the South Side Railroad of Long Island on October 28, 1867, as part of its initial line from Jamaica to Babylon. With the consolidation of the South Side into the Long Island Rail Road system in 1876, all passenger trains were rerouted to use the LIRR main line from Berlin Junction (west of Jamaica) to Rockaway Junction and the LIRR's Rockaway Branch to Springfield Junction, where it crossed the South Side. This change took effect Sunday, June 25, 1876, and resulted in the closure of the South Side's Berlin, Beaver Street (Jamaica), Locust Avenue, and Springfield stations.[4][5] This formed the current configuration, where the Montauk Branch follows this route, mostly ex-South Side, and the Atlantic Branch (then the Old Southern Road) uses the old South Side to Springfield Junction.

The line was soon reopened due to a lawsuit, but closed again by Austin Corbin as of January 6, 1881.[6]

Effective May 17, 1906, when an electrified third track opened alongside the Montauk Division from Springfield Junction to Valley Stream, the Old Southern Road and this new track became part of the Atlantic Division.[7]

Stations

Zone Station Miles (km)
from AT		 Date
opened		 Date
closed		 Connections / notes
1
South Ferry
Henry Street
Clinton Street
Atlantic Terminal 0.0 (0.0)[8] 1877 NYC Subway: (at Atlantic Avenue – Barclays Center)
NYCT Bus: B41, B45, B63, B65, B67

Previously Flatbush Avenue

Vanderbilt Avenue 1877[9] before 1890[10]
Washington Avenue c. 1878[11] before 1890
Grand Avenue 1877[9] c. 1878[11]
Bedford 1.2 (1.9)[10] c. 1842[12] c.1900[8] Formerly Franklin Avenue; Connected to the Brooklyn, Flatbush and Coney Island Railway
Nostrand Avenue 1.6 (2.5)[10] 1877[9] NYC Subway: (at Nostrand Avenue)
NYCT Bus: B25, B44, B65
Brooklyn Avenue 1877[9] before 1890[13]
Kingston Avenue
Albany Avenue 1877[9] before 1890
Troy Avenue 2.3 (3.7)[10] 1877[9][13] c. 1899[10]
Schenectady Avenue c. 1878[11] before 1890
Utica Avenue 2.6 (4.1)[10] 1877[9][13] c. 1899[10]
Rochester Avenue 1877[9] before 1890
Ralph Avenue 1877[9] before 1890
Saratoga Avenue
Hopkinson Avenue 1877[9] c. 1878[11]
Rockaway Avenue c. 1878[11] before 1890
Stone Avenue 1877[9] c. 1878[11]
East New York 3.4 (6.4)[10] c.1848[14] NYC Subway: (at Atlantic Avenue)
(at Broadway Junction)
NYCT Bus: B12, B20, B25, B83, Q24, Q56

Originally Manhattan Beach Railroad Crossing

Howard House 4.1 (6.6)[10] c. 1843[15] 1905 Originally East New York
Pennsylvania Avenue
Wyckoff Avenue c. 1878[16]
Bradford Avenue 1899[10][17]
Van Siclen Avenue c. 1878[18]
Warwick Street 4.9 (7.9)[19] 1905 1939[20]
Linwood Street 5.0 (8.1)[10] c. 1878[11] c.1899[10] Originally Van Wicklens
Norwood Avenue 5.3 (8.6)[10] c. 1890[13] 1915[21]
Cypress Avenue c. 1853[22] c.1890[13]
Cypress Hills c. 1849[23]
Autumn Avenue 5.8 (9.3)[8] 1905 1939[21] Originally Railroad Avenue
Adamsville 1872[21][24] 1876[21]
City Line
Unionville
Union Course 6.3 (10.1)[8] c. 1842[25] 1939[21]
Woodhaven 6.7 (10.8)[10] c. 1848[26] 1939[21] Originally Woodville
Trotting Course Lane 1837[21] 1842[21]
Woodhaven Junction 7.2 (11.6)[10] c. 1890[13] 1977
Chester Park
Clarenceville 7.8 (12.5)[10] c. 1874[24] 1939[21]
Lefferts Avenue c. 1867 1870[21]
Morris Park 8.1 (13.0)[10] c. 1890[13] 1939[21]
Morris Grove 1878 1886
Boland's Landing 1889 Also known as the Morris Park Facility, Employee only station
Berlin
Berlin Junction
Dunton 8.9 (14.3)[10] 1869 1939 Originally Van Wyck Avenue, then Berlin
3 Jamaica 1836 LIRR; Babylon, Belmont Park, Far Rockaway, Hempstead, Long Beach,
Montauk, Oyster Bay, Port Jefferson, Ronkonkoma, and West Hempstead Branches
NYC Subway: (at Sutphin Boulevard – Archer Avenue – JFK Airport)
NYCT Bus: Q20A, Q20B, Q24, Q30, Q31, Q43, Q44, Q54, Q56
MTA Bus: Q6, Q8, Q9, Q25, Q34, Q40, Q41, Q60, Q65
NICE Bus: n4
AirTrain JFK: Jamaica Station Route
Beaver Street 9.6 (15.4)[8] 1867 1913 Also known as Jamaica—Beaver Street
South Street 1917 1922
Cedar Manor 10.8 (17.4)[8] 1906 1959 Originally Power Place
Locust Manor 11.7 (18.8)[8] 1869 NYCT Bus: Q3 (to JFK Airport), Q85

Originally Locust Avenue

Higbie Avenue 12.6 (20.3)[8] 1908 1960 Originally Springfield
Springfield 1867 1906
Laurelton 13.1 (21.1)[8] 1907 NYCT Bus: Q77, Q85

Originally Central Avenue

Montauk Branch converges at Springfield Junction
Rosedale 13.8 (22.2)[8] NYCT Bus: Q5, Q85

Originally Foster's Meadow

Queens / Nassau county line
4 Valley Stream 15.7 (25.3)[8] 1869 NICE Bus: n1
Trains continue south via the Far Rockaway Branch or east via the Long Beach, Babylon and Montauk Branches

See also

References

  1. ↑ Governor Tours Atlantic Avenue Terminal Improvement Project: $200 Million Project Underway at Terminal Complex in Brooklyn, press release dated July 11, 2002
  2. ↑ Joseph Hutchins Colton, Map of the city of Brooklyn, 1849, NYPL Digital Image ID: 434722
  3. ↑
  4. ↑ Vincent F. Seyfried, The Long Island Rail Road: A Comprehensive History, Part One: South Side R.R. of L.I., © 1961
  5. ↑ ‹The template Cite BDE is being considered for deletion.› "Railroad Changes". Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Brooklyn, NY. June 27, 1876. p. 2.
  6. ↑ ‹The template Cite BDE is being considered for deletion.› "Without Railroad Accommodation". Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Brooklyn, NY. February 22, 1881. p. 4.
  7. ↑ Employee timetable, May 17, 1906
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Employee timetable, May 17, 1906
  9. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 ‹The template Cite BDE is being considered for deletion.› "Steam Motors". Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Brooklyn, NY. August 12, 1877. p. 4.
  10. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 Employee timetable, June 28, 1899
  11. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Employee timetable, November 4, 1878
  12. ↑ ‹The template Cite BDE is being considered for deletion.› "Long Island Railroad". Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Brooklyn, NY. May 13, 1842. p. 2.
  13. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Employee timetable, June 24, 1890
  14. ↑ Timetable
  15. ↑ ‹The template Cite BDE is being considered for deletion.› "Long Island Railroad Co". Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Brooklyn, NY. March 4, 1843. p. 3.
  16. ↑ ‹The template Cite BDE is being considered for deletion.› "Instructive". Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Brooklyn, NY. November 22, 1878. p. 4.
  17. ↑ Employee timetable, September 17, 1899
  18. ↑ ‹The template Cite BDE is being considered for deletion.› "Shocking". Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Brooklyn, NY. November 14, 1878. p. 4.
  19. ↑ Employee timetable, September 20, 1905
  20. ↑ LIRR Notice for November 1, 1939
  21. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 "Long Island Railroad Station History" (PDF). Aug 12, 2012. Retrieved 2012-09-17.
  22. ↑ ‹The template Cite BDE is being considered for deletion.› "Travel". Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Brooklyn, NY. June 16, 1853. p. 4.
  23. ↑ ‹The template Cite BDE is being considered for deletion.› "The New Cemetery of the Cypress Hills". Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Brooklyn, NY. April 9, 1849. p. 2.
  24. 1 2 Timetable, November 8, 1874
  25. ↑ ‹The template Cite BDE is being considered for deletion.› "Races, Union Course--Long Island Railroad". Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Brooklyn, NY. October 3, 1842. p. 3.
  26. ↑ Timetable, May 1, 1848

External links

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