(Newsday posted the following article by Jennifer Barrios on its website on January 22.)
NEW YORK — State lawmakers are expected to decide Monday on the schedule for a series of public hearings on the problem of gaps between the platforms and trains in the Long Island Rail Road system.
Only after the meetings can state leaders decide how to fix the problem that led to the death of a Minnesota teenager in August and scores of injuries, said state Sen. Carl Marcellino (R-Syosset).
Marcellino said he’s waiting to be debriefed on the gap issue by officials from the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, the parent agency of the LIRR.
“I want them to move and move as quickly as possible,” Marcellino said of MTA officials.
“The only way to do this is to get them in front of us and ask them very pointed questions and ask them what’s the delay and why can’t they do it sooner and what’s holding them up.”
Tom Dunham, a spokesman for state Sen. Dean Skelos (R-Rockville Centre), said Skelos’ office had talks with new MTA CEO Elliot “Lee” Sander on Saturday over the gap issue.
“It was about the timeline for the report, it was about where are we going moving forward, and it was also about the Senate transportation .committee hearings,” Dunham said of the conversation. He added that while Sander seemed to appreciate the .senator’s eagerness to address the issue, no specific plans emerged regarding the gap.
Sander could not immediately be reached for comment yesterday.
Once the MTA gives the senators a report on the reasons behind why the gap problem has plagued the transportation agency, Dunham said, the Senate can begin to craft a solution.
“You need to know exactly what the scope of the problem is before you can create any set of solutions,” he said. “We really need that analysis from the MTA before we can move forward.”
In a statement released yesterday, LIRR Acting President Raymond Kenny said gap mitigation is a priority and outlined the agency’s efforts at fixing the gaps at more than a dozen stations.
“These efforts are continuing, while the LIRR actively evaluates potential long-term measures to mitigate the gap,” Kenny said.