LIRR: More than 78,000 passenger trips to, from U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills
Long Island Rail Road train at the Shinnecock Hills station on Thursday. Credit: John Roca
The Long Island Rail Road said there were 78,097 passenger trips to and from this year’s U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills, up 5 percent from the prior Open tournament there in 2004.
The 2004 tournament saw 74,584 passenger trips, the railroad said.
The United States Golf Association built a special platform at Tuckahoe Road just to the south of the Shinnecock Hills Golf Course — as it did in 2004 — and erected a temporary bridge over Route 27 so passengers could avoid roadway traffic.
The railroad said Saturday was the busiest day at the special stop, and that 32 percent of the U.S. Open’s patrons that day came by the LIRR.
Planning for the tournament at Shinnecock is difficult because it is served by a single track on the Montauk Branch, limiting the number of trains that can operate at any time.
The railroad did not immediately respond to questions about whether the additional Shinnecock service had affected other service.
CORRECTION: The organization responsible for building the special platform was incorrect in a previous version of this story.
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