Long Beach Branch

The Long Beach Branch is an electrified rail line and service owned and operated by the Long Island Rail Road in the U.S. state of New York. The branch begins at Valley Interlocking, at Valley Stream station, where the Atlantic Branch continues west and the Far Rockaway Branch heads south. The Long Beach Branch runs east, paralleling the Montauk Branch, until Lynbrook, where it turns south towards Long Beach. [1] [2]

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Contents
[hide]*1 History
 * 2 Service
 * 3 Stations
 * 4 References
 * 5 External links
 * }

[edit] History
The Long Beach Branch originally began as the New York and Long Beach Railroad Company from Lynbrook to Long Beach in 1880. The original southern terminus was along the Atlantic Ocean. LIRR leased and operated the NY&LB RR from 1880 to 1904, at which time the NY&LB RR merged with the LIRR. Five years later, the station was moved from the ocean front to Reynolds Channel, where it remains today.

A five mile (8 km) extension to Point Lookout, New York owned by the Long Beach Marine Railway Company existed between 1881 and 1895. When the LIRR bought the line in 1886, they continued to operate passenger trains along the line until 1890.[3]

The northern terminus of the branch was extended westward from Lynbrook to Valley Stream in 1910 as part of its integration into the Atlantic Branch. The line was double-tracked from Valley Stream to Lynbrook in late 1910, then from East Rockaway to Wreck Lead (“WL”) on January 15, 1927. Electrification of the line occurred from Valley Stream to Long Beach on main tracks in September 1910. Electrification came to freight sidings between 1928 and 1930. Color light signals were installed in January, 1927.

[edit] Service
On weekdays, most Long Beach Branch trains serve Penn Station, with limited service to/from Flatbush Avenue, and run express between Jamaica and Valley Stream. On weekends, trains also stop at Locust Manor, Laurelton and Rosedale, and all trains serve Penn except for some post-midnight trains to/from Flatbush Avenue and one to Jamaica.