The Rejected LaGuardia AirTrain Proposal

AirTrain LGA Rendering

One of the more interesting transit concepts proposed in the last decade was the LaGuardia AirTrain. In January 2015, as part of a $400 million mega project to provide better transportation options to the historically underserved LaGuardia Airport former Governor Cuomo announced the plan unexpectedly as part of one of his many state addresses. It was to be opened alongside the major renovations that were being constructed at LGA.

This idea was definitely not the first to improve transportation options to the airport, as they have actually floated various ideas over the years with the first of nearly a dozen big ones being to extend the N and W subway lines up there, which was actually back in 1943, and since then they’ve floated numerous proposals including subway, rail, an automated people mover, and even ferries. Then came AirTrain LGA.

At first this idea felt like a solution to an age old issue of getting to LaGuardia, however, people soon realized it wasn’t as efficient as it had initially seemed to be. This is because of one major design flaw that eventually killed the project. Unlike other proposals, which aimed to bring people to Manhattan, the main crowd for the airports, this one actually did the opposite going east instead to Mets-Willets Point, where connection would be available to the IRT Flushing Line and LIRR for service to points west through doubling back. 

Proposed route of the AirTrain

While people were in support of some sort of rail link, “the backwards airtrain” as it was commonly called did not gain much support from experts given that it would be doing the opposite of what it should be doing which is getting you to alternative transportation closer to Manhattan. This backwards rail route would essentially offer little to no time savings given the fact that you have to double back which is time consuming. And, to add, Mets-Willets Point isn't the most well-equipped to handle all the additional ridership that would be heading to the airport. The only options are the LIRR, which really doesn't run all that frequently, and, the 7 train, which runs frequently but is often at capacity, especially during the peak times when the most people need to get to the airport. It's also important to factor in the fact that this doesn't help people who live to the east on Long Island or in Brooklyn as there's no easy way to get the AirTrain without having a minimum of 3-way transfers. This doesn't really help people like me, who live on Long Island unless you live west of Port Washington. 

So as you can probably figure, the project was eventually scrapped by Kathy Hochul in 2023. For the better or for the worse, NYC will once again lay silent without dedicated rail transportation to the airport.

For me, as someone who generally flies out of LaGuardia, I agree that there should be better transportation there. While with my experience a cab normally isn't terrible, traffic to NYC airports (specifically LGA) is known to be some of the worst, and during peak times and around holidays traffic can be even worse. 

I personally though would still really like to see another dedicated transportation option, as coming from Long Island the only other option besides the cab is the bus, which many for one (including myself) will avoid and also doesn’t really do anything about the traffic. And while I personally would still like to see another AirTrain built, considering the fact that LGA will only grow and traffic will only get worse. It should be built from a location that is both conveniently accessible by both Long Island and NYC, something that really can’t be said for the old concept. 

My personal choice would be Woodside- for one it’s a convenient 10 min trip to Manhattan, two it’s already configured to handle quite a bit traffic going to LGA thru the bus connections, and three, it’s well equipped to handle the boost in ridership that would go along with it with combiner access to both the LIRR and IRT Flushing Line with both provide fast and frequent service. However, the issue lies in where to put it- Woodside is already a very busy complex and is double stacked with the 7 train running above the LIRR, and it’s also important to note that it would be running above dense urban neighborhoods as well for the final stretch.  

So, in conclusion, while an AirTrain to LGA is a solid idea, one that would be a big piece of the puzzle to provide adequate transportation to New York’s airports. It’s a concept that while a strong idea, has been noted to be too costly and difficult to build for the moment. Hopefully someday we will see some sort of rail link there, whether it be another automated peoplemover, a rail/subway extension/or some other new idea. We will just have to see what happens. Perhaps an idea might be right under our noses as we speak.

Interlocking Walkthrough: WOOD

Up next for our Interlocking Walkthroughs is WOOD interlocking. It’s not that old anymore, but for a part of the railroad that has been around for so long, I expected it to be older. This interlocking first went into service on March 21, 1988, right around my birthday! As crazy as it may seam for an area so congested, WOOD only consists of three crossovers with two on the Port Washington Branch and one located on the Main Line.



Switches

WOOD interlocking covers the short span east in which the Port Washington and Main Line both run parallel each other. There are three crossovers. The Port Washington Branch’s crossovers, going from west to east, consist of a crossover from track 1 (the westbound track) to track 2. Not to far down the line, there’s another back from track 2.

The Mainline, however, only has one little crossover from Mainline 2 (the eastbound express track) to Mainline 4 (the eastbound local). This switch could be used for an eastbound that is bypassing Woodside but needs to make local stops in Forest Hills and Kew Gardens. However, normally I’ve noticed the LIRR will run trains stopping at Forest Hills and Kew Gardens down Mainline 4 in the first place, so these switches don’t get much use outside of a couple of peak trains.

Signals

For it’s 20th birthday present, in 2008, the LIRR gave WOOD Interlocking a nice little revamp. They installed high-speed switches which must have been the big present as high-speed switches are perfect for operations like what’s being performed on the Main Line. The signals used here are tri-color light signals arranged in a triangle pattern.

WOOD interlocking, like many Port Washington Branch interlockings, was controlled by HAROLD tower until it was closed in 1995. Nowadays, it’s remotely-controlled by Penn Station Control Center.

Neighbors

This interlocking is bordered to the west by HAROLD interlocking and is bordered to the east by JAY interlocking. Due to the LIRR typically running the majority of trains that are stopping at Kew Gardens and Forest Hills are routed down Mainline 4 in the first place, this switch isn't used too often. During rush hours, having trains slow for crossovers is nt the greatest thing when you have to operate so many trains so close together, and it's much more efficient and streamlined to not have to switch tracks.

Well, this should wrap up WOOD interlocking!