Great Neck station

Great Neck
Great Neck
	View from the overpass, looking east.
General information
Location	Middle Neck Road & Station Plaza; Great Neck,New York
Coordinates	40°47′14″N73°43′34″W/ 40.787235°N 73.725986°W
Owned by	Long Island Rail Road
Line(s)	Port Washington Branch
Distance	13.8 mi (22.2 km) fromLong Island City
Platforms	2side platforms
Tracks	2
Connections	Nassau Inter-County Express:n20G,n20H,n21,n25,n26,n57,n58
Construction
Parking	Yes (local permit required)
Bicycle facilities	Yes
Accessible	Yes
Other information
Station code	GNK
Fare zone	4
History
Opened	October 27, 1866 (NY&F)
Closed	1883, 1924
Rebuilt	1883, 1893, 1925–1934, 1990s
Electrified	October 21, 1913; 750V(DC)third rail
Previous names	Brookdale (1869–1872)
Passengers
2012—2014	9,772
Rank	9 of125
Services
Location
Location

Great Neckis astationon theLong Island Rail Road'sPort Washington BranchinGreat Neck Plaza, New York.It is the westernmost station on the branch inNassau County.The station is located at Middle Neck Road and Station Plaza at Great Neck Road, 0.25 miles (0.40 km) north ofNorthern Boulevardand 15.9 miles (25.6 km) fromPenn StationinMidtown Manhattan.From just east of the station, the line becomes single track to Port Washington.

History

Great Neck was originally theterminusof theNew York and Flushing Railroadwhen it was built in 1866 by a subsidiary called the North Shore Railroad, and called Brookdale Station. The NY&F was acquired by theFlushing and North Side Railroadin 1869, and the name was changed to Great Neck in 1872. The F&NS was consolidated into theFlushing, North Shore and Central Railroadin 1874 through a merger with theCentral Railroad of Long Island,only to be leased in 1876 by the LIRR.

Though Great Neck station served as a terminal station for much of the 19th century, it was never intended to stay this way. An attempt to extend the line east from the station towardRoslynfailed in 1882. Thirteen years later, wealthyPort Washingtonresidents persuaded the LIRR to bring the terminus to their hometown. This required the construction of theManhasset Viaductover the marshes at the southern end ofManhasset Bay,which was authorized by an LIRR subsidiary called theGreat Neck and Port Washington Railroad.^[4]On June 23, 1898, the first LIRR train passed through Great Neck to cross the Manhasset Viaduct, Long Island's highest railroad bridge, to extend the line throughManhasset,PlandomeandPort Washington.In 1924, the station was closed; it was reopened at its current location on February 26, 1925. Agrade crossingelimination project then brought the tracks below ground by June 8, 1934.Elevatorsare on both sides. The wall along the southeastern platform has an aluminum sculpture by artist David Saunders that was installed in 2001.

The station recently received enhancements and modernizations, includingWi-Fi,LCD display screens, wayfinding signage, new benches, new bike racks, and charging stations, among other things, as part of a greater, systemwide initiative to upgrade stations and infrastructure.^[5]

Station layout

The station has two high-levelside platforms,each 10 cars long.

G	Ground level	Exit/entrance, crossover, parking, buses
P Platform level	Platform A,side platform
	Track1	←Port Washington BranchtowardPenn StationorGrand Central Madison(Little Neck)
	Track2	←Port Washington BranchtowardPort Washington(Manhasset)→
	Platform B,side platform

Pocket track

As a "readiness project" for the LIRR'sEast Side Accessextension project toGrand Central Terminal,the MTA extended Track 2 an additional 1,200 feet (370 m) east, making it long enough to store two trainsets.^[6]^[7]^[8]^[9]This would allow the LIRR to increase the number of peak-hour trips between Great Neck and Penn Station/Grand Central. It also included replacement of the original Colonial Road Bridge, built in 1897, which passes over the area of the expanded pocket track, with a new bridge with wider lanes and built to reduce noise. Also included in the project are drainage improvements to theright of wayto alleviate flooding on the tracks during storms. In 2010, several homeowners in the area opposed the project, arguing that construction would harm their quality of life. Representatives from the MTA stated that the expanded pocket track would not be used for overnight train storage or maintenance.^[6]The project was initially scheduled for completion in December 2015.^[10]Because of delays, the new bridge was installed in April 2016, and the construction of the pocket track was scheduled for completion in December 2018 at a total cost of $45.2 million.^[11]However, the completion date was again pushed back several times;^[12]^: 60as of November 2021^[update],a tentative completion date of August 2022 was announced.^[13]^: 59Following another delay,^[14]construction of the extended pocket track would ultimately be completed in December 2022.^[15]

In popular culture

The Great Neck station was referenced inThe Great Gatsbyas "West Egg".^[16]

Gallery

Great Neck LIRR station
Platform level at Great Neck.
APort Washington-bound train at the station, as seen from a staircase to Platform B.
The station's parking lot, looking towards the station house.
One of the elevators, as seen from street level.
A plaque commemorating the grade crossing elimination in the Great Neck area.
Conductor's Watch & Key Chainby David Saunders