With Monday’s winter storm expected to bring more than a foot of snow, heavy winds and potential coastal flooding, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) issued an update on Sunday, Jan. 31, on agency-wide preparations being made to keep customers and employees safe while delivering as much reliable service as possible.

 

Metro-North late-night service will end early on Monday evening. MTA Bridges and Tunnels will implement an empty and tandem tractor trailer ban beginning at 6 a.m. on Monday. Buses are being outfitted with tire chains and will run on a reduced schedule.

 

The MTA urges customers to stay home and avoid unnecessary travel during the storm. MTA employees will be spreading salt and clearing surfaces of snow and ice, keeping signals, switches, and third rail operating. A third rail, also known as a live rail, electric rail or conductor rail, is a method of providing electric power to a railway locomotive or train, through a semi-continuous rigid conductor placed alongside or between the rails of a railway track.

 

Agency officials said MTA will also remove any downed trees that may fall across tracks and will attend to any weather-related challenges during the storm.

 

MTA chairman and CEO Patrick J. Foye said the impending winter storm is a serious one with high snow fall levels predicted. “MTA employees will be working hard over the next 48 hours and beyond to prepare for and respond to the storm. Even still, we strongly recommend New Yorkers stay home, stay safe and avoid unnecessary travel on Monday and Tuesday until the storm subsides.”

 

New York City Subway

MTA officials said that while the underground portions of the subway system remain unaffected during snowstorms, there are nearly 220 miles of outdoor track throughout the boroughs. To prevent subway trains from being blocked in yards, they will be moved and stored underground in anticipation of heavy snow or ice. This will impact service on lines with express service.

 

New York City Transit officials said it has a fleet of snow and ice-fighting trains designed to keep outdoor tracks, switches and third rails clear of snow and ice. They said high-powered snow throwers, jet-powered snow-blowers, and de-icing cars – retired subway cars modified with tanks and other specialized equipment to spray de-icing fluid on the third rail – are ready for immediate deployment.

 

New York City Buses

Due to predicted high levels of snow accumulation, buses will operate reduced service. All local buses will be fitted with tire chains. Sixty-foot articulated buses will be replaced with 40-foot standard buses starting Sunday night.

 

New York City Transit and the MTA Bus Company have 35 snow-fighting vehicles in its fleet, which operate on predetermined routes to reach terminals, lay-over locations, and other highly trafficked areas and known hotspots.

 

Bus managers have technology that tracks service when it falls below minimum expected levels on any route, allowing them to make decisions more quickly. Bus service will be adjusted based on road conditions around the city and service curtailments on a route-by-route basis are possible.

 

MTA New York City Transit’s Department of Buses and the MTA Bus Company officials said the following equipment and supplies are on hand to fight the storm:

• More than 800,000 gallons of diesel fuel
• More than 338,000 pounds of de-icing material
• 28,000 gallons of gasoline
• 83 box trucks
• 77 truck-mountable snow plows / salt spreaders
• 57 portable snow blowers / throwers
• 40 emergency response vehicles / road service trucks
• 25 tow trucks
• 35 road trucks
• 36 bucket trucks
• 22 dump trucks
• 14 portable generators
• Two fuel tanker trucks

 

MTA Bridges and Tunnels

MTA officials said MTA Bridges and Tunnels personnel have activated full inclement weather preparedness for all facilities. Staffing will be maintained at a level necessary to fight the storm with up to 300 employees engaged in weather-related activities.

 

Due to expected high-wind conditions, a ban on empty tractor trailers and tandem trucks will be in effect on all MTA bridges starting at 6 a.m. on Monday, Feb. 1. The MTA Bridges and Tunnels personnel will be closely monitoring the weather and will implement additional appropriate restrictions as needed.

 

Fleet Operations garages will be activated throughout the storm to maintain the availability of all storm-fighting equipment and material including:

• 8,100 tons of salt
• 50 portable snow blowers / throwers
• 74 truck mountable snow plows / salt spreaders
• 45 portable generators
• 31 front loaders
• 31 wreckers / tow trucks
• 25 variable message signs
• 23 bucket trucks
• 17 weather monitoring stations
• 14 light tow vehicles
• 12 chainsaws
• 10 forklifts
• 10 torches
• 10 car carrier trailers

 

Bridges are equipped with embedded roadway sensors for temperature and above-ground atmospheric sensors that deliver real-time information on wind velocity, wind direction, humidity and precipitation via wireless communication. These sensors record data used to determine if speed restrictions are necessary.

 

Flooding conditions will be closely monitored and appropriate mitigation measures will be put into place as needed. All non-critical roadworks will be suspended during the storm, with contractors on-site and/or available to assist with weather-related response and mitigation.

 

Commuter Railroads

Metro-North Railroad is amending service plans in advance of the storm, and may amend them further depending on storm conditions.

Snow-fighting equipment has been winterized, tested and positioned strategically throughout the railroad. Protective heat circuits are being verified to be operational, air brake lines are being purged of any moisture to prevent them from freezing, and electric trains are being fitted with special third rail shoes to prevent snow from accumulating.

 

Metro-North Railroad

Service will end early on Monday, Feb. 1, with the day’s final trains departing their origins as early as 9:39 p.m. and arriving at their final destinations after midnight. To view final train departures at individual stations, customers should visit mta.info or use the Metro-North Train Time or MYmta apps.

 

Officials said Metro-North is closely monitoring conditions and may further modify or suspend service if snowfall is heavy. In ice storms, blizzards, or sustained winds over 39 mph, train service may be severely curtailed or suspended, especially if there are frozen switches, downed trees, or a loss of third rail or overhead catenary power.

 

Metro-North Railroad installed third rail snow shoes on its electric trains to scrape ice off of exposed third rails, is shrouding exposed train couplers with snow covers to keep snow out, is treating exposed shoes with de-icer, and is spraying door panels with anti-freeze agent.

 

Metro-North Railroad has snow-fighting equipment ready to go, strategically located at facilities around the system.

 

With regard to switches, officials said the interlocking tracks that allow rail traffic controllers to route trains from one track to another are being treated with an anti-freeze agent and lubricated. Metro-North Railroad uses electric switch heaters.

 

Access-A-Ride

Access-A-Ride paratransit service will continue to provide service, with behicles using tire chains and all-weather tires, although shared trips and feeder service will be suspended during the storm. Reservations are being accepted on a 24-hour booking cycle instead of the usual 48-hour booking cycle. Customers may experience additional travel and wait times. Customers may want to reconsider travel, unless medically necessary. The paratransit command center will be monitoring the storm to track and respond to immobilized vehicles and customers.

 

New York City Transit has coordinated a procedure with New York City first-responders and the NYC Office of Emergency Management for rescuing customers on immobilized vehicles or those who develop medical needs during storms.

 

Real-Time Service Updates

Customers should check the service status of their subway or train line or bus route before they travel at new.mta.info or on the MYmta app. Modified emergency schedule details for commuter railroad customers are also available through the LIRR Train Time and Metro-North Train Time apps.

 

Mario Péloquin, MTA chief operating officer, said, “The safety of our employees and customers is our number one priority, and we want to make sure that essential workers are able to get to where they need to be throughout this storm.” He added, “Our agencies are well prepared for winter events and are ready to respond quickly as the weather dictates.”

 

Sarah Feinberg, interim president, MTA New York City Transit, said the agency has been been preparing for the storm for days which puts it in a good position to respond as the weather forecasts change. “We are prepared for customers to be out in the system, but better if you can stay home to avoid unnecessary travel,” she said.