Mineola (LIRR station)

Mineola
Mineola Station, where a long-standing sign company welcomes commuters to the village of Mineola.
Location	Front Street & Mineola Boulevard Mineola, NY
Coordinates	40°44′25″N 73°38′28″W / 40.740291°N 73.641025°W / 40.740291; -73.641025Coordinates: 40°44′25″N 73°38′28″W / 40.740291°N 73.641025°W / 40.740291; -73.641025
Owned by	MTA
Line(s)	Montauk Branch   Oyster Bay Branch   Port Jefferson Branch   Ronkonkoma Branch
Platforms	2 side platforms
Tracks	2
Connections	Nassau Inter-County Express (see Mineola Intermodal Center below)
Construction
Parking	Yes
Bicycle facilities	Yes
Disabled access	Yes
Other information
Fare zone	4
History
Opened	1837
Rebuilt	1872, 1883, 1923, 2001, 2007
Electrified	October 1926 750 V (DC) third rail
Previous names	Branch, Hempstead Branch
Traffic
Passengers (2006)	10,348[1]
Services
Preceding station   LIRR   Following station Merillon Avenue toward New York terminals Main Line (Port Jefferson Branch) (also Ronkonkoma Branch) Carle Place toward Greenport or Port Jefferson Oyster Bay Branch East Williston toward Oyster Bay Jamaica toward New York terminals Montauk Branch Hicksville toward Montauk

Mineola is a station on the Main Line of the Long Island Rail Road in the village of Mineola, New York. All trains for the Port Jefferson, Ronkonkoma, and Oyster Bay branches run through this station, as well as a few for the Montauk Branch. As of May 2011, 145 trains stop at this station every weekday,^[2] more than any other station east of Jamaica. It is the eighth-busiest station on the LIRR in terms of weekday boardings, with 10,348 boardings per day in 2006.

Location

Mineola lies in the center of the town of the same name. Specifically, it is situated to the west of Mineola Boulevard between Station Road to the south and Front Street to the north.

Transit-oriented development

As one of the LIRR's busiest stations and near the center of Nassau County, the Village of Mineola Planning Committee created a master plan for the town meant to encourage transit-oriented development within a few blocks' radius of the station. Much of the plan involves creating links in the surrounding street grid, streetscape improvements, and pedestrian zones.^[3] The Long Island Index, which aggregates data and plans about the island, has listed Mineola as one of the most high-profile targets for smart growth, as of 2010 noting that the town is about halfway through the process of revitalization.^[4]

History

Mineola station was originally built on the south side of the tracks in 1837 as "Branch station", then later renamed "Hempstead Branch station" when the Long Island Railroad was expanded to Hicksville. The station was renovated in June 1872, but a second depot was built between May and June 1883. This station was razed in 1923, and the third one was relocated to the north side of the tracks on September 22, 1923.^[5] The enclosed shelter was built at the old station house's location (See below). A reconstruction project took place in 2001.

The second shelter across the tracks

The Nassau Tower and substation in front of the pedestrian crossing.

With its connection to the Oyster Bay Branch, the Mineola station has always been a major railroad junction, but even more so in the 19th and much of the 20th Century. On the south side of the station, a wye existed between the power sub-station^[6] for a line that connected the West Hempstead Branch with the Oyster Bay Branch.^[7] Sometimes referred to as the Garden City Branch, the east branch of this wye began at Third Street then crossed Main Street, then the main line itself before connecting with the Oyster Bay Branch until it was eliminated in 1928.^[8] The rest of the line was eliminated in 1966.^[9]

Station layout

Mineola has two side platforms and two tracks, both slightly-offset to accommodate 12 railway cars. The main station house is on the north side of the tracks, at Front Street and Mineola Boulevard. The station is wheelchair accessible and has a crossover and a grade crossing for pedestrians at the east end. A smaller enclosed shelter is on the opposite (south) side of the tracks. The Oyster Bay Branch splits away at a grade crossing just east of the pedestrian crossing.

M	Mezzanine	Platform crossover and access to parking garage
P Platform level, access to street and buses
	Platform A, doors will open on the right
	Track 1	← Ronkonkoma Branch toward Jamaica, Atlantic or Penn (Merillon Avenue) ← Port Jefferson Branch toward Jamaica, Atlantic or Penn (Merillon Avenue) ← Oyster Bay Branch toward Jamaica, Hunterspoint or Penn (Jamaica) ← Montauk Branch toward Jamaica or Penn Station (Jamaica)
	Track 2	Ronkonkoma Branch toward Farmingdale or Ronkonkoma (Carle Place) → Port Jefferson Branch toward Hicksville, Huntington or Port Jeff (Carle Place) → Oyster Bay Branch toward Oyster Bay (East Williston) → Montauk Branch toward Patchogue, Speonk or Montauk (Hicksville)→
	Platform B, doors will open on the right

Mineola Intermodal Center

Nassau Inter-County Express, or NICE (formerly MTA Long Island Bus), operates bus service to the Mineola Intermodal Center on the south side of the station. Prior to the opening of the intermodal center on October 16, 2006, bus stops were located at Third Street, a block away from the station. Six NICE routes stop there, as well as local taxicab services.

The transit center, diagonally across from the station, as seen in June 2009, while still run by the MTA.

Nassau Inter-County Express routes

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Mineola (LIRR station).

• Official LIRR station information page for Mineola
• Station timetable for Mineola
• Mineola Station and Vicinity (The SubwayNut.com)
• NASSAU Interlocking (The LIRR Today)
• Station House from Google Maps Street View (Exterior)
• Platforms from Google Maps Street View
• Station House from Google Maps Street View (Interior)