Snow cancels weekend work, Nostalgia Train

New York City Transit’s winter weather fleet is ready for service. (Photo via NYCTSubwayScoop)

If the folks reading us the weather are to be believed, we have one giant winter storm heading our way. Right now, the weather service is predicting up to a foot of snow for New York City, but I’ll believe it when I see it. The MTA, on the other hand, has to prepare for the weather no matter what, and to that end, they have canceled all weekend work. Only stations along the BMT Brighton Line and the Far Rockaway line are closed due to ongoing work.

On a sad note, the weather is also shelving the Nostalgia Train for the weekend. It’s simply too cold, and there too many contingency plans in place for Transit to devote resources toward the old train cars. It will return next weekend for a final ride in 2009.

So what then can we expect this weekend? Well, due to the need to store as much rolling stock as possible underground, the agency often uses express tracks for storage during winter storms. Thus, trains that normally run express for all or parts of their routes may run local. Passengers using lines that run outdoors may experience slower train rides or longer-than-normal waits. A few weeks, Transit urged passengers who take the A, E, D, F, N, Q, 2, 3, 4, and 5 to allow extra time during snow storms.

Meanwhile, the agency has a fleet of work trains ready to combat the snow. “Our goal is to keep our services up and running so that our customers can get to where they need to be no matter what the weather,” NYC Transit President Thomas F. Prendergast said. “We have a tremendous investment in machinery, manpower and experience so that customer confidence remains high in our ability to transport them safely.”

For those waiting for trains at stations aboveground, be on the look for some anti-snow vehicles Transit sent out a release earlier this week with info:

Snow Throwers – Precise directional snow throwing equipment. Includes a two stage impeller and side mounted rotating brushes to throw snow up to 200 feet and can remove 3,000 tons of snow an hour. This is similar to a household snow blower, just a lot bigger.

Jet Blowers – This equipment uses a jet engine to remove accumulated snow from the roadbed and deposit it a distance from the tracks so that it cannot slide back. This piece of equipment is used primarily to keep the yards clear.

De-Icer Cars – Equipped with scraper shoes that scrape off ice and also uses equipment to direct a stream of deicing fluid to melt and/or prevent ice buildup on the third rail. If ice is permitted to build up, subway car power pickup equipment will not be able to draw electric current from the third rail and the train will stop.

Ballast Regulator – Uses brush/broom to evenly sweep and push up snow onto an undercab conveyer and away from the track.

The picture atop this post shows the equipment ready and waiting for the snow. Will the storm hit? Who knows. But for this weekend, we are spared the pains of weekend service changes.