LIRR is asked to alert riders to cleanups

A state senator is asking Long Island Rail Road officials to let riders know when they plan to clean up the mess around the tracks.

Sen. Charles Fuschillo (R-Merrick) said Wednesday that he had requested that the LIRR "provide a schedule of when it will clean up the blighted areas along its tracks which are littered with debris."

Fuschillo's request follows a May 1 Newsday story describing the piles of old wooden rail ties, rusty rail pieces, and other junk left on the LIRR's right of way by its own workers over the past several years.

The LIRR has said it aims to clean up the messiest locations by the end of the year, but Fuschillo said the LIRR should tell riders when cleanups would take place, and what measures it was taking to keep track areas clean.

"The LIRR should not be using its right of way area as a garbage pail," Fuschillo said in a statement.

The LIRR has identified track areas for cleanup and work is under way. Extensive cleanups were done at Jamaica and Babylon during major signal projects. A new policy has been implemented requiring cleanup as track work is performed.