New LIRR timetables start Monday for projects and trackwork

The Long Island Rail Road's new timetables take effect Monday to accommodate capital improvement projects, including the controversial third track between Floral Park and Hicksville, and trackwork.

The schedule changes will affect weekend, overnight and midday, off-peak travel to reduce the impact to rush hour, the railroad said in its monthly newsletter.

The changes are:

• Huntington/Port Jefferson and Ronkonkoma branches: Work for the Main Line Expansion Project to install a third track between Floral Park and Hicksville will mean one of two tracks between Carle Place and Hicksville will be out of service during overnight hours. Some overnight westbound trains from Huntington and Ronkonkoma will leave up to 18 minutes later, while some eastbound overnight trains will depart up to 11 minutes later.
• Babylon and Long Beach branches: The Babylon branch's westbound midday trains will depart up to 12 minutes earlier. The Long Beach branch's westbound midday trains will leave a minute earlier. On weekdays, one of two tracks between Jamaica and Valley Stream will be out of service during midday, off-peak hours to accommodate "state-of-good-repair trackwork" to improve service reliability. 
• Brooklyn Service, Far Rockaway and Hempstead branches: The Far Rockaway branch's eastbound trains will depart 9 minutes later on weekends. The Hempstead branch's westbound weekend trains will leave up to 7 minutes earlier, while the branch's eastbound trains will depart 2 minutes later. Several westbound late-night trains to Brooklyn, as well as their connecting trains at Jamaica, will depart up to 5 minutes earlier. One of two tracks between East New York and Jamaica will be out of service during overnight hours to allow for cable installation in the Atlantic Tunnel.

More details on the timetables are available here: web.mta.info/lirr/Timetable/