NEW YORK — Some Metro-North service will resume on the Hudson line on Tuesday, July 11, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority announced this afternoon (July 10).
At least one train per hour will operate between Peekskill and Grand Central Terminal. This extends service two stations farther north than was available today, when damage from heavy rains on Sunday suspended service north of Croton-Harmon [see “Flooding halts Amtrak, Metro-North, CSX …,” Trains News Wire, July 10, 2023].
“To be able to restore partial service so soon is a testament to the around-the-clock work undertaken by the Metro-North workforce,” Metro-North Railroad President and LIRR Interim President Catherine Rinaldi said in a press release. “The work will continue without stopping into Tuesday as we work to restore full service on the Hudson and Harlem lines as soon as possible.”
Metro-North will also provide limited bus service for essential travelers between Croton-Harton and Poughkeepsie, with an intermediate stop at Beacon. No substitute service is being provided at Manitou, Garrison, Cold Spring, or New Hamburg.
Meanwhile, service on the Upper Harlem Line remains suspended between Southeast and Wassaic. That service was suspended Monday morning because of water above the rails and a washout south of Dover Plains. Substitute bus service between between Southeast and Wassaic will continue through at least midday Tuesday, making all stops.
Watch the MTA website for updated information.
Amtrak service between New York and Albany, which uses the Metro-North Hudson line, will remain suspended at least through the remainder of Tuesday, according to a Monday evening update. Amtrak has also suspended service within Vermont for the Ethan Allen Express and Vermonter because of the severe weather. Watch Amtrak Alerts on Twitter or check the Service Alerts and Notices section of the Amtrak website for more information.
CSX Transportation, which has experienced washouts on its River Line Subdivision along the Hudson, informed customers of delays of at least 24 hours because of flooding between Selkirk, N.Y., and New Jersey. The railroad said it was closely monitoring local conditions and evaluating potential reroutes.
— Updated July 11 at 7:10 a.m. CDT with Amtrak suspension in New York continuing through all of Tuesday.
Does anyone know if CSX is detouring via Binghamton and NES&W?
Notice a theme? Landslides in SoCal, a derailment north of LA, track problem on KCMO light rail, washouts in the Hudson Valley, there are no detour routes so service grinds to a halt. There are some detour routes, a very few – the Empire Builder via BNSF after CPKC goes on the ground in Wisconsin, and the long and tedious freight detour onto Great Northern when Northern Pacific collapses. And of course NS after East Palestine, traffic finds another route.
In contrast, there’s always a way for highway traffic to get through. Interstate 95 collapses in Philadelphia, I-95 falls into a river in Connecticut, I-75 Walter P. Chrysler Freeway in Hazel Park (Michigan) closed when an oil tanker blows up and takes down an overpass, I-35W collapses in Minneapolis, IH 794 Daniel Hoan Bridge closed both ways in Milwaukee when a NB approach span collapses, ceiling of Boston’s I-90 Ted Williams Tunnel falls onto a car, New York State Thruway bridge washes out at Scoharie – Amsterdam, call the coroner, haul away the bodies, but somehow highway traffic finds a detour route and keeps rolling.
The people who read TRAINS MAGAZINE know why our nation depends on fixed rail, despite the problems and deficiencies. Everyone else — the average John and Jane in America, thinks that rail is obsolete, and that traffic should be on the highways.
MTA crews’ yellow work trains are all around after the deluge racing against time. Great job experienced railroaders, great job!
Dr. Güntürk Üstün