LIRR M3 RFW Jamaica to Ronkonkoma. First M3 RFW I’ve done in over 3 years. 6/15/23

Рет қаралды 9,740

Жыл бұрын

Enjoy this exciting head end ride aboard these veteran Budd M3 cars. The Main Line to Ronkonkoma is a high-speed, well engineered right of way. This is further enhanced by the new triple track east of Floral Park to Hicksville. This is narrated with some graphics identifying all stations, signal indications, interlockings, and passing trains. I hope you enjoy this ride as much as I did. In the future, I will do a complete ride from Penn Station to Ronkonkoma. (At times the loud horn drowns out of some of my railroad crossing ID’s but only a few. I could take this video out and redo it but I don’t think it’s worth the effort for just a few crossings. I will keep this in mind for future videos of this type.)

Пікірлер: 64

@donkauke2372 Жыл бұрын

As always, very informative. The “modern” updates are amazing. Being early gives them the straightest road going. Electrics really allow them to move. Thanks for all of your videos.😮

@bobainsworth5057 Жыл бұрын

My favorite view of track. Straight down at speed. Thanks.

@eliasthienpont6330 Жыл бұрын

🦁🦁🦁🦁🦁🦁LION c LIKE No. 225

@Jeff-uj8xi Жыл бұрын

Thanks Tim....... You know how much I love the head end rides. It will be a sad day when they finally retire the M3 cars. How many M3 cars are still in service?

@3985uprr Жыл бұрын

About 80

@jimpern Жыл бұрын

Best video I've seen yet of the triple-track main to Hicksville. IMO, even more important than the third track was the elimination of all the grade crossings. I hope the LIRR can do more of that, like in downtown Farmingdale?

@NickyD Жыл бұрын

not in the plans

@hornshowrailfan2541 Жыл бұрын

Tim I just rode Cal Train. Great engineer. It’s definitely worth the trip.

@waleedworldwide8164 Жыл бұрын

Always love your videos but going down the Ronkonkoma branch are my favorite ones to watch. Memories of growing up in the 70s and 80s just south of the Peters Blvd crossing in CI. I watched the branch transform from diesel to electric and remember the days when there were Pine Aire, Republic and Grumman stations. I even remember when the trains branched off to CI State Hospital just about where the midpoint of the present eastbound platform at CI station is and paralleled Lowell Avene. Long live those Change at Hicksville days!! 😂😂😂 Thanks for your great videos!

@3985uprr Жыл бұрын

I’m glad I made mention of all of those things.

@robertcantore330 Жыл бұрын

Awesome!!! For some reason i can smell the inside of those cars just by looking at a picture of them!!! 😂

@ariesarethebest271 Жыл бұрын

Nice. Can't wait to watch. Adding to my LIRR RFW playlist.

@3985uprr Жыл бұрын

I think you will find it worthy

@ariesarethebest271 Жыл бұрын

@@3985uprr Loving it. Watching now. Sure hope you get more M3 rfw footage.

@3985uprr Жыл бұрын

@@ariesarethebest271 I want to get a NYP to Ronkonkoma ride. They are easier to find on Ronkonkoma Line in pm rush. They are erratic on other lines

@kobyschechter8163 Жыл бұрын

The third track project on the main line cost 2.6 billion dollars and took four years to complete but it was a great investment by the MTA and the state. They worked through it even during the worst days of the pandemic. Also with the eight grade crossings removed as part of the project the quality of life for residents along the main line has significantly improved with no more blowing of the train horns.

@DanielNYR 8 ай бұрын

I love seeing Long Island rails. Wish I could afford to live back home.

@aeoliankid1 11 ай бұрын

First rate video, and great running commentary!

@MrMaster767 Жыл бұрын

Excellent video!!

@ariesarethebest271 Жыл бұрын

You need to redo all of your rfw videos and add commentary on the trips. 😂

@MrMaster767 Жыл бұрын

@@ariesarethebest271 I prefer non commentated trips. I appreciate the offer though.

@ariesarethebest271 Жыл бұрын

@@MrMaster767 I was only kidding.

@edkammerman2533 Жыл бұрын

Great ride, Thanks Tim informative as always😊

@Mahees_230 Жыл бұрын

I used to work at PPC. The tracks to the station are lone gone, but the canopy and the platform still exist on G Road. Somewhere on the World Wide Web is a picture of a Alco with passenger coaches at the PPC station. I would pick up and drop off employees at the Deer Park station and take clients to Social Services on 2nd Street. I definitely don't miss those days.

@scottyerkes1867 Жыл бұрын

Nice ride! Up front views are my preference. Great speed on this branch. Thanks Tim😀💚

@3985uprr Жыл бұрын

Soon I will try to do a complete ride from New York to Ronkonkoma

@jimpern Жыл бұрын

When I worked at Grumman in the 1980s, I used to see a Ferrari 308 parked everyday at the Bethpage station. That guy had a lot of moxie parking a car like that every day in an LIRR parking lot! I happened to see him leave one day and followed at a distance. He turned up Round Swamp Road when I turned down Merritts Road. I think I crossed the tracks on Merritts more than any other crossing during my L.I. residency.

@3985uprr Жыл бұрын

If you go over Merritts crossing too fast, you can bottom out and rip apart an exhaust pipe

@jimpern Жыл бұрын

@@3985uprr Yeah, I remembered it was quite a bump.

@3985uprr Жыл бұрын

@@jimpern it slopes. I went over it yesterday

@jonathanng2390 Жыл бұрын

New Deer Park is in Edgewood.

@3985uprr Жыл бұрын

I was looking at a map, and I saw the word Baywood nearby

@byronthomas4733 Жыл бұрын

LOL I was thinking the same thing. At farmingdale how are those people getting any sleep with all the crossings on top of one another like that..... Poor urban planning...smh

@bornjamerican52 Жыл бұрын

I thought I was the only one that thought that 168 been there forever 😂😂😂😂😂😂. I used to work in that area off of rte 110 many years ago. I remembered their used to be one track after Brentwood, now it’s 2 tracks 😮

@thedemocratnetwork 9 ай бұрын

I did the m7 and m9 about a month ago

@williamyoon7660 Жыл бұрын

14:00 First time I've seen a 12-car LIRR train in a railfanning video since the opening of Grand Central Madison

@randyferron Жыл бұрын

Hey I love your detailed information on your vids much better doing a head on instead of from side window never used the rails myself but grew up in Brentwood LI thanks!

@3985uprr Жыл бұрын

A lot of people actually like window views, but admittedly, I personally like to do the front views if I have the opportunity

@RailfanJourneys Жыл бұрын

Nice video. The grade crossing just east of Deer Park that you couldn't recall it's name would be Executive Drive.

@raycooney7632 Жыл бұрын

Tim, another superb ride. I love headend rides and your fabulous narration and graphics. I worked for NYC, PC and CR. I had many head end rides during my career but have nothing to show for it.

@3985uprr Жыл бұрын

Glad you enjoyed it!

@jonathanng2390 Жыл бұрын

I suspect the ride from Jamaica to Hicksville is faster now that the grades are all eliminated. Definitely quieter.

@3985uprr Жыл бұрын

It was always fast but getting rid of those crossings eliminated many safety hazards

@JoeyLovesTrains Жыл бұрын

Really hoping to see another rfw ride out of or into Penn station again soon! Would make my way down to New York to see myself, but work has not been making that easy

@1313ealmonte Жыл бұрын

Great video. I had a question, which is the busiest branch for the LIRR as far a amount of services

@3985uprr Жыл бұрын

I would say Babylon line. Up to 6 trains an hour at times. Ronkonkoma is busier than it was. 4 trains an hour up from 2. That’s my favorite electric line.

@mathewrufrano7833 Жыл бұрын

You would not like the RFW on many European trains, they rarely toot their horns at grade crossings.

@3985uprr Жыл бұрын

That would be somewhat depressing

@CTrail1711 Жыл бұрын

Nice highspeed and smooth ride on those old crusty but soldiering cars.

@DJinNJ08830 Жыл бұрын

Don't forget to add whistle guy to horn guy

@Hunter525McGuinnessengineer Жыл бұрын

He😮

@gerardmoran9560 Жыл бұрын

Great video! As always, your narrative is informing and entertaining. Question- the signal at the east end of the Hicksville platform had an extra light at the 9 o'clock position. It reminds me of the B&O signals. I've seen that on the West Hempstead branch where it joins the Montauk Branch. What aspect would it display? Cheers

@3985uprr Жыл бұрын

It’s a red flashing signal that tells engineer that train orders are to be received. Since that tower is closed, no orders would be delivered so the light would not be needed

@gerardmoran9560 Жыл бұрын

@@3985uprr Thanks!

@hornshowrailfan2554 Жыл бұрын

Ridership seems to be up. What are the levels compared to before COVID?

@3985uprr Жыл бұрын

Not quite pre-pandemic but it’s getting closer little by little

@ghostengineer Жыл бұрын

Ridership is 70% of pre pandemic

@joesmith332 Жыл бұрын

What do those small "W" black on white signs mean?

@3985uprr Жыл бұрын

Whistle posts. Sound horn. They are mostly posted before railroad crossings.

@stanstas8354 Жыл бұрын

At Hilside I noticed a M9 set in the middle of a M7's - can they run togther in passenger service?

@3985uprr Жыл бұрын

No they can’t

@carlossanchez-kz4wh Жыл бұрын

Does the signals east of Rt.110 still work?

@carlossanchez-kz4wh Жыл бұрын

@@3985uprr No it wasn't seen very strange they still work but they took down the ones at Farm Interlock

@ultrafan7889 Жыл бұрын

Nah they don't, they were actually bagged up at one point but they never took them down and the bags must've flew off. They used to be the signals for the for the former FARM2 interlocking which is basically PW interlocking today, you can see the signals are not connected to any wiring and the signal ID tags are not on them anymore.