Thursday, March 11, 2020: The Long Island Railroad is scheduled to begin demolishing the old railroad car wash on Cedar Street in Babylon this weekend. The work is part of a $35 million project to build a state-of-the art facility for washing Long Island Railroad trains and will take approximately 30 months to complete.
In a letter sent to residents of Babylon Village this week, the LIRR said the demolition will begin tomorrow, March 12, and continue for three weekends until March 28. Work will start on Friday evenings at approximately 9 p.m. and end Sunday night at 7 p.m.
Support column installation will begin Sat., April 10 and continue for eight weekends until May 30. During these weekends, work will take place between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m., Saturday and Sunday. In order to minimize the noise levels, only vibratory equipment will be used to install the support columns, a railroad spokesman said.
The railroad, which has the legal right to build the facility at that site, has worked with the Village of Babylon on the project. Mayor Ralph Scordino said he focused on minimizing the impact of the work on residents living near the site and on the golf course, which is adjacent to the existing building.
“We were concerned about the noise and how the work would impact on our golf course, which is due to open this Wednesday,” said Scordino. “But we also wanted to work with the railroad because many of our residents use the train to get to and from work every day and the railroad is an important part of our economy. We wanted to help ensure that our residents ride on clean and properly maintained railroad cars.”
The railroad, which has an easement near the site, worked with the Village to add to that easement from the golf course parking lot so it could easily and safely pull large vehicles and trailer tractors in and out of the site. The Village is being compensated for that, said Scordino.
“We want to make sure that there is as little noise and parking problems as possible,” said Scordino. “Railroad officials promised to strive to limit the impacts of the work.”
Anyone who has questions or concerns can call the LIRR’s Public Affairs Department at 718-558-8228.