New York and Atlantic Railway

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New York and Atlantic Railway
Logo
Reporting marks NYA
Locale Long Island, New York
Dates of operation 1997–present
Track gauge ft 8½ in (1435 mm) (standard gauge)
Headquarters Glendale, Queens
NY&A locomotive #159 pulls freight through Jamaica Railroad Station.
NY&A locomotive #159 pulls freight through Jamaica Railroad Station.

The New York and Atlantic Railway (NY&A) (AAR reporting marks NYA) is a short line railroad formed in 1997 to provide freight service over the tracks of the Long Island Rail Road, a public commuter rail agency which had decided to privatize its freight operations. NY&A operates exclusively on Long Island, New York and is connected to the mainland via the Hell Gate Bridge and a car float (the New York Cross Harbor Railroad) from Brooklyn to New Jersey. Lumber, building products, scrap metal, construction & demolition debris, food, beer, gravel, propane, chemicals, structural steel, plastics and recyclable cardboard/paper are NYA's main traffic. Occasionally, NYA transports utility poles and electrical transformers to the LIPA facility in Hicksville, which has its own spurs. NYA also moves municipal solid waste in sealed containers on COFC trains. Some NYA customers are located off-line, and make use of NYA's team tracks to receive or ship products. Team tracks are located in Bay Ridge, Hicksville, Huntington, Greenlawn, St. James, Islip, Richmond Hill, Maspeth, Speonk, Medford, Yaphank, Southold and elsewhere on the Long Island Rail Road lines which NYA serves. Most of NYA's customers have their own spurs, making the use of team tracks unnecessary. Some other occasional products shipped to Long Island via the NYA is bentonite and rock salt. The LIRR and the NYCTA both receive new passenger equipment via the NYA, and ship out old, retired equipment for scrapping by way of the NYA.

The NY&A officially took over Long Island Rail Road's freight operations on May 11, 1997.

[edit] Equipment used

The Railroad operates with former Long Island Railroad locomotives through a lease. These locomotives include ex-LIRR:

Number Builder/model
101 EMD SW1001
105 EMD SW1001
106 EMD SW1001
151 EMD MP15AC
155 EMD MP15AC
156 EMD MP15AC
159 EMD MP15AC
261 EMD GP38-2
268 EMD GP38-2
270 EMD GP38-2
271 EMD GP38-2

Also used in service are Louisville and Indiana Railroad SW1200s #9321 and 9373.

[edit] References

  • Skeats, William J. (April/May/June 2005), "The New York & Atlantic Railway", The Railroad Press (65), p. 32. - lists startup date and general info about the railroad

[edit] External links