New-York tribune., 1910-01-05
l.. |. R. R. PLANS OUT
QUICK TUNNEL TIME.
President Peters Promises TO-
Minute Reduction.

Ralph Peters. president of the Long ISL
and Railroad, said yesterday that total
OF forty minutes would be saved between
the company's stations on Long Island and
New York City as soon as the East River
tunnels were opened for traffic, allowing
through trains to be run into the Penn
sylvinia station at 33d street and Seventh
avenue.
By this new arrangement the scheduled
running time between the Pennsylvania
station and the Long Island stations will
be as follows: Jamaica, Is minutes; Flush
Ing, 16 minutes; Great Neck 26 minutes;
Port Washington, 80 minutes: Whitestone
Landing, q minutes; Garden City 81 min
utes; Hampstead, 3S minutes. and Mineola,
80 minutes.
THE Long Island Railroad was the first
steam railroad operated in New York City
to electrify a portion of its lnes,' Mr..
Peters said This was from Flatbush ave-
nue., Brooklyn, where a connection is made
with the subway system. TO the Rock
aways. Jamaica ard Hampstead. These
lines were put in operation in 1906 and
1908, representing a total of more than one
hundred miles of track operated by the
third rail.
THE Borough of Queens is benefited di-
rectly by this Improvement as 1t furnishes
quick and cheap service to Jamaica and all
intermediate stations between between ia
maica and F1atbush avenue, all the Rock
aways to Rockaway Park, Arverne, Far
RCckaway and Valley Stream; also, to ter
yitory between Valley Stream and Jamaica,
and to Hollis, Queens, Floral Park. Gar
den City and Hampstead. With the cleo
triication of the lines all the stations
named were brought twenty minutes nearer
the financial district of New York. These
improvements, including the separation of
grades in Atlantic avenue, Brooklyn, rep
resent an outlay of more than 100000.
Besides the many improvements COM
rleted and under way by the Pennsylvania
Railroad, the Long Island Railroad is add
ing tc it's facilities in order to handle the
expected increase IN traffic upon the conf
pletion OF the tunnels. These improvements
ments are:
"A four and six track high speed electric
line to Jamaica, an elevated freight line
between the freight yards and the Montauk
Division at Long Island City, SO that no
freight business will be handled on the
same tracks with the passenger business;
double track connection between the main
line and the Montauk Division. so that the
Rockaway branch from Woodhaven juno
ton and Glendale Junction will be brought
into the tunnels; the double tracking and
eectrifcation of the lines to Port Washing
ton and Whitestone; the extension of the
electric system to Long Beach. Oyster Bay,
Farmingdale. Babylon and the Wading
River branch.
THE building of additional running
tracks freight delivery yards, new stations,
etc; the purchase of new steel cars Q50 now
under construction: new substitutions, ma
chinery, etc, for electric system; the build
ing of a large terminal, general office build
ing, etc, at Jamaica, and the elimination of
grade crossings at Van Wyck avenue,
Rockaway Road and Division street and
new street under the tracks, where the new
station will be. at Guilford street and Carl
ton avenue
Mr. Peters adds that he hopes the city
will cooperate with the company in the
elimination of all grade crossings in Queens,
saying that it is a vital matter to the bCr-
ough, and that, without such cooperation,
the borough will be held back for years.
Mr.. Peters states that the completed and
proposed improvements will represent an
expenditure Of more than S30,000,000 by the
Long Island Railroad, and that the tunnels
will be in operation by the summer of 1910.