Hoping to encourage more high-tech businesses to locate along Route 110 in western Suffolk County, town officials from Babylon and Huntington have recently put forward a worthy plan to reduce growing auto congestion in the corridor. It rests on providing shuttle bus service to business parks along the highway via transit hubs at either end of the highway. The hubs would be developed at the LIRR Huntington station and by reviving a defunct Ronkonkoma Branch station near Republic Airport in Farmingdale. Employees could arrive by train or drive to proposed Park & Ride lots at the stations, then transfer to frequent buses that would drop them off and pick them up at work.

Babylon town Councilman Steve Ballone told the Campaign that he and his colleagues are now approaching State and county leaders and the business community to win support for the proposal, which faces one major obstacle. New York State DOT currently owns the old East Farmingdale station and has been in negotiations to lease to property to developer Fairchild Corporation. In exchange, Fairchild would sell NYS DOT 11 acres of its property along the Republic airport to create a runway safety area. However, NYS DOT told Newsday last week that it would not move to complete the deal until both the Long Island Railroad and elected officials have time to consider the new Route 110 proposal.

A previous attempt to tackle Route 110 congestion — the Suffolk Express Clipper, an express bus funded by DOT and operated by Suffolk County has attracted fewer than 200 riders per day on 10 runs. It operates during morning and evening rush hours between Farmingdale and Melville, with stops at the Hauppauge industrial park. Business community leaders say this is in part due to infrequent service and only three scheduled stops in the corridor. The Babylon-Huntington plan seems to hold more promise. Officials intend to develop the plan in conjunction with businesses, with incentives for employers to encourage workers to use transit and instituting transit-supportive zoning around each hub.

LIE Express Buses Fall Short - June 12, 1998

LIRR Station Closures Bring Equity Questions to Fore - March 13, 1998

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