GRAND CENTRAL MADISON

Grand Central Madison Open for Business - Railway Age January 26, 2023 Contributing Editor, David Peter Alan

Originally planned for completion in 2009, the Long Island Rail Road’s East Side Access Project is finally finished and in service. On Jan. 25, 2023 revenue trains ran from the LIRR’s Jamaica station to a new terminal facility 14 stories beneath Madison Avenue in Midtown Manhattan. The new terminal is slightly northwest of Metro North’s historic Grand Central Terminal. The New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) has named the new facility “Grand Central Madison.”

Photo: Marc A. Hermann/MTA

Grand Central Madison stretches from 45th to 48th Streets, with a mezzanine-level walkway that connects to Grand Central Terminal. There are eight stub-end tracks: four over four and numbered 201-204 and 301-304, a sort of continuation of the numbering in the original GCT, where upper-level tracks bear two-digit numbers and lower-level tracks are numbered in the 100s.

For more than a century, LIRR riders have had West Side access to Penn Station, as well as service to Atlantic Terminal in downtown Brooklyn, which replaced a much-larger one roughly a half-century ago. Giving Long Islanders East Side access is not a new idea; a plan was developed in the 1950s and proposed in 1963. Construction began in 1969 on the 63rd Street Tunnel, a two-over-two tube that was built to house tracks for the subway on the upper level and for the LIRR on the lower. Construction was stalled when the city became caught up in a fiscal crisis in the mid-1970s. The tunnel was eventually completed after decades of delays, and the subway system’s F-Train began running on its upper level in 2001. Now, 22 years later, the lower level finally has LIRR revenue trains running in it. Non-revenue trains began running on January 11, 2023

           
Escalators to the LIRR track level platforms  -   Here's Track 301 and 302 Photos: Marc A. H Hermann/MTA

Yet to be filled rack for the new
Grand Central Madison timetables

M9 Station board on train

Jamaica Departure Board - First train to Grand Central 10:45am Photo: The LIRR Today

Grand Central Madison Inaugural Ride  souvenir ticket

Grand Central Madison display board

 

Photos: Dave Morrison, unless noted.

Grand Central Madison Opening Day Timetable for 1/25/20223 ONLY. The first train was 9013, departing Jamaica at 10:45am, arriving Grand Central at 11:07am.  - Courtesy of Kevin Wong

Jamaica to Grand Central shuttle trains. Started on Wednesday, January 25, this operation will end after next Sunday, February 26, when General Order 102 goes into effect with the full schedule to Grand Central.

M7 #7279 (Bombardier Transportation, 6/2004) comes to a stop at Woodside station with train #9633 (Jamaica-Grand Central) in this view SE.
Consist: 7279/7426+7539-7540+7641-7642+7133-7134

Info/Photo/Archive: Jeff Erlitz   - 2/19/2023

M7 7130 (Bombardier Transportation, 6/2003) leads train #9634 (Grand Central-Jamaica) just west of Woodside station in a view northwest with Signal Bridge 30 spanning the six-track right-of-way. This train was one of the alternating all-local trips. The other trips operate express between Grand Central and Jamaica. These Safetran color-light automatic block signals replaced traditional position light signals as part of the reconfiguration of Harold Interlocking for East Side Access.

Consist: 7130-7129+7288-7287+7774-7773+7408-7407

Info/Photo/Archive: Jeff Erlitz   - 2/19/2023

The same train about to pass under Signal Bridge 30 west of the station. Note that the white arrow is lit under the signal’s number plate, denoting this train is lined at Harold for the Grand Central Branch. Note also that there are arrows for Main Line Track 4 (on the left) and Port Washington Branch Track 1, even though there are no wayside signals here for those two tracks. The home signals at Harold also have these arrow indicators. For whatever reason, they felt this “advance” warning was warranted. The eastbound home signals at Harold have had similar arrow indicators (denoting a route established to the Port Washington Branch) ever since WIN Tower burned way back in March 1977! Those signals do not have an advance warning like these here do.

Info/Photo/Archive: Jeff Erlitz   - 2/19/2023

M7 7407 (Bombardier Transportation, 4/2005) leads all-stops local train #9637 (Jamaica-Grand Central) under Woodside Avenue and into Woodside station in this view southeast. Wood Interlocking, which is not on Main Line Tracks 1 and 3 here, was initially placed in service on 3/21/1988 but only on the Port Washington Branch on the left. The home signals on the signal bridge here, and the single crossover you see
beyond the Woodside Avenue overpass, were installed as part of East Side Access in the past decade.

Consist: 7407-7408+7773-7774+7287-7288+7129-7130

Info/Photo/Archive: Jeff Erlitz   - 2/19/2023