Hurricane Earl may swamp holiday travelers
Lifeguards scan the water from the top of a sand barrier that construction crews built to protect against Hurricane Earl, Thursday, in Virginia Beach, Va. (Sept. 2, 2010) Credit: AP
10.6% That's the increase in road travel for the Labor Day weekend, up from last year's holiday weekend, that AAA New York forecasters predict in New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania, spokesman Robert Sinclair Jr. said. About one out of 11 residents in the mid-Atlantic region will make a road trip this weekend, which the AAA records as starting Thursday, he said.
Hurricane Earl may throw a serious monkey wrench in the path of local travelers. "It could move up the traffic jam up a few hours," Sinclair said. "Getting off the Island can be difficult on a good day. On a bad day, it can be downright impossible."
Top 5 road trip destinations, according to AAA New York members' requests: Washington, D.C.; Niagara Falls; Boston; Williamsburg, Va.; and Lancaster, Pa.
1.4 million travelers are expected to take to the skies at New York City's two airports, from Friday through Tuesday, said Steve Coleman, a spokesman for the Port Authority. Of those, 660,000 fliers will use Kennedy Airport and 290,000 travelers will use LaGuardia Airport, he said. "It's pretty much in line with what we saw last year," Coleman said.
The Long Island Rail Road, bracing for Earl, is suspending some service in eastern Suffolk County early Friday. The suspensions will be in effect until at least Saturday morning, officials said.
- All trains east of Ronkonkoma on the Greenport branch and east of Speonk on the Montauk branch are canceled because of concerns sustained winds of more than 40 mph and gusts of 60 mph could break gates at grade crossings and cause trees, power lines and debris to fall onto tracks, LIRR spokesman Joe Calderone said.
- The last westbound train from Greenport will leave at 5:30 a.m. Friday.
- The last westbound train from Montauk will leave at 5:39 a.m. Friday.
The LIRR still plans to run eight extra eastbound trains from Penn Station this afternoon to accommodate travelers.
Fire Island Ferries will stop service at 3 p.m. Friday and resume Saturday morning.
The National Weather Service forecast:
Friday: Showers, mainly in the afternoon. The rain could be heavy at times. High near 81.
Saturday: Sunny, with a high near 78.
Sunday: Sunny, with a high near 74.
Labor Day: Sunny, with a high near 75.
Gilgo-related search for remains expands ... Congestion pricing target date ... Suffolk air quality ... A dog's bucket list
Gilgo-related search for remains expands ... Congestion pricing target date ... Suffolk air quality ... A dog's bucket list
