LIRR to eliminate or replace 2 grade crossings in Ronkonkoma

The LIRR is moving forward with plans to eliminate two railroad grade crossings in Ronkonkoma that are considered among the most accident-prone track intersections in Suffolk County.

The Federal Railroad Administration awarded the New York State Department of Transportation a $2.24 million grant earlier this month to begin an effort to replace the LIRR’s crossings at Ocean Avenue and Pond Road in Ronkonkoma, according to the FRA and LIRR documents published online.

"Eliminating the crossings would reduce the likelihood of fatalities and serious injuries and improve traffic flow and overall quality-of-life at these locations," LIRR President Robert Free said in a statement.

LIRR officials did not say how they planned to eliminate the grade crossings. In recent grade elimination projects, the railroad has rerouted auto traffic under its tracks through excavation. The crossing could also be eliminated from vehicle traffic, though the MTA did not answer questions about what options are on the table.

The federal grant funding will go toward planning, preliminary engineering, and an environmental review, according to the railroad. The LIRR also did not disclose a total budget for the work, or when construction would begin. Under the grant agreement, New York State will contribute $336,000 to the effort, according to the FRA.

FRA spokesman William Wong said in a statement that the LIRR grade crossing eliminations will improve safety and traffic.

In a statement, New York Department of Transportation spokesman Stephen Canzoneri said the agency "will work with our partners at the LIRR to ensure that this study meets all federal standards."

There are nearly 300 rail-grade crossings on Long Island, and despite the inherent problems of having trains share an intersection with cars and pedestrians, projects to eliminate the crossings are rare. The railroad eliminated eight grade crossings, all in Nassau, between 2018 and 2022 as part of its $2.5 billion Third Track project. In most cases, the railroad sunk the roadway to carry vehicles underneath its tracks.

Before those projects, the last time the LIRR had eliminated a crossing was in 1998, when it elevated its tracks over the roadway at two Mineola crossings.

The two crossings pegged for changes in Suffolk rank relatively high in the Federal Railroad Administration’s Web Accident Prediction System, which uses historic data to determine the likelihood for accidents at crossings. The Pond Avenue crossing ranked 15th out of about 200 Suffolk County crossings, having last reported an accident in 2022.

Ocean Avenue ranked 27th. Its last accident was in 2019, according to FRA data.

The Suffolk County crossing with the highest likelihood for an accident is at 18th Street in Wyandanch. It was the site of an accident in 2020, 2022 and 2023 according to the FRA.

The LIRR on Monday also advanced another project aimed at improving service for Town of Brookhaven commuters. The Metropolitan Transportation Authority's finance committee approved a deal for the LIRR to acquire a 5.33 acre property from Rose Berlin Associates LLC for the development of a relocated Yaphank train station.

Upon approval by the full MTA Board on Wednesday, the industrial property, at the southeast corner of the William Floyd Parkway and Long Island Expressway in East Yaphank, will be transferred to the LIRR "for no compensation as the site also benefits the seller’s future adjacent development plans," according to MTA documents.

By Alfonso A. Castillo

alfonso.castillo@newsday.com@alfonsoreports

Alfonso Castillo has been reporting for Newsday since 1999 and covering the transportation beat since 2008. He grew up in the Bronx and Queens and now lives in Valley Stream with his wife and two sons.