UPDATE: LIRR Suspends All Train Service Between Mineola, Hicksville Until Evening Rush
Long Island Railroad customers dealt with a second straight commute fraught with delays and cancellations Wednesday after a freight train derailed Tuesday afternoon on Long Island.
There was be no eastbound train service to Ronkonkoma, Huntington or Port Jefferson between 6 a.m. and 10 a.m., according to the MTA. Some westbound trains bypassed Westbury and Carle Place due to reduced track capacity resulting from the derailment.
At about 10:30 a.m., the LIRR suspended all train service between Mineola and Hicksville at least until Wednesday's evening rush as crews worked to repair hundreds of feet of track that were damaged the derailment .
The LIRR continued to operate on only one of two tracks between Westbury and Hicksville after the Atlantic Railway freight train derailed west of Hicksville at about 1:45 p.m. Tuesday, according to the MTA. Two of the train's 16 cars went off the rails.
The derailed freight cars are still blocking one of the two tracks shared by trains on the Ronkonkoma and Port Jefferson branches, transportation officials said.
Tuesday's derailment forced officials to suspend service on the LIRR and prompted delays that lingered through the afternoon.
Local
No injuries were reported.
Authorities say the train was carrying some type of construction material or debris; It's not clear what caused the derailment.
Service on the Port Jefferson and Ronkonkoma branches was briefly suspended after the derailment. Trains got running at about 2:15 p.m., but residual delays were reported and westbound service was suspended again about two hours later. It resumed at about 8 p.m.
