We've had a name change. The LIRR Main Corridor Improvements Project is now the Main Line Corridor (MLC) - Third Track Project. What's in a name change anyway? Not much and a lot all at once. One project is actually two projects. But this has been the case all along, much to the astonishment of some.

Last week, the MTA Long Island Rail Road issued a press release titled, "MTA LIRR Submits Main Line Corridor - Third Track Project Preliminary Draft Environmental Impact Statement To Federal Transit Administration For Review." The body of this work leaves no doubt that at-grade crossing elimination and or closing and third track installation, are inseparably linked while standing as separate and independent entities that do not necessarily have any linkage at all.

Can one be done without the other? The answer is yes. As proposed, both "Crossing Option A" and "Crossing Option B" while not mentioning the third track, allow for the construction of the third track without any at-grade crossing elimination or closing in any community. In fact, parts of third track have already been built just to the east of Nassau Boulevard in Garden City, Garden City Park and Mineola. The Herricks Road railway bridge has the third track on it. There is a big space underneath the Mineola Boulevard roadway bridge for the third track. The new Roslyn Road railway bridge plate has a space reserved for the third track. One part of the project is already going forward independent of the other. What part of the project do you think the LIRR is most interested in?

The first sentence of the fourth paragraph of the MTA LIRR press release is quite instructive. It says, "The Third Track will add a 'passing lane' to the MLC - separating express trains from local trains - and will offer greater capacity, operational flexibility and faster recovery time in the event of incidents or delays." Based on this justification separation would not be required if local trains were eliminated. If the New Hyde Park and Merillon Avenue stations were closed, commuters could board trains, less than three-quarters of a mile to the south, at the Nassau Boulevard and Stewart Manor train stations on the Hempstead Line. Then there could be two main line express tracks from Nassau Boulevard in Garden City to Queens Village. With tens of millions of construction dollars saved, a shuttle service could be established to pick up and drop off commuters at the Nassau Boulevard and Stewart Manor stations. No need for a third track in New Hyde Park, Garden City or Floral Park. Sound far fetched? Does a $1 billion dollar "passing lane" seem reasonable to you?

The construction of a main line third track through the Village of New Hyde Park would have infinitely more negative consequences than positive ones. Eliminating dangerous at-grade crossings in the Village of New Hyde Park would have infinitely more positive consequences than negative ones. "Crossing Option B" would seem to cause less collateral damage than "Crossing Option A" and effectively create a "quiet zone" in the Village of New Hyde Park, silencing 3,000 train horn blasts a day. The LIRR has masterfully separated the two major components of this mega project. We are going to have to decide as a cohesive voice what is in the best interests of the entire Village of New Hyde Park as it relates to this decade-long mega project.

Edward W. Powers

New Hyde Park