LIRR service restored but delays, congestion remains

Systemwide delays on the LIRR have been reduced following a halt to train service during the Tuesday night rush hour, but trains trying to leave the Jamaica station hub were still backed up due to the disruption, the commuter rail said.

Delays averaged 10 to 15 minutes on the Oyster Bay, Port Jefferson and Ronkonkoma branches, down from 45 to 60 minutes following a 6 p.m. report of a person underneath a train just east of the Carle Place station, officials said. The person was not supposed to be on the tracks, the Long Island Rail Road said.

“No one was struck,” said LIRR spokesman Aaron Donovan. “There had been a fear that someone was initially.”

The suspension of service on those branches cascaded into a systemwide headache. Almost all other LIRR branches faced delays as trains waited to leave Jamaica. Delays on Babylon and other South Shore branches were reduced to an average of 10 to 15 minutes, the LIRR said in a 7:20 p.m. alert.

At least four trains were canceled after the LIRR first tweeted alerts.

Details on the person located on the tracks were not immediately available.