Long Island City (LIRR station)

Long Island City
Looking west at the station (to the right of the fence) and yard (to the left); the brick building to the right is ventilation for the Queens Midtown Tunnel.
Location	Borden Avenue & Second Street Long Island City, New York
Coordinates	40°44′29″N 73°57′25″W / 40.74139°N 73.95694°W / 40.74139; -73.95694Coordinates: 40°44′29″N 73°57′25″W / 40.74139°N 73.95694°W / 40.74139; -73.95694
Owned by	Long Island Rail Road
Line(s)	Main Line (City Terminal Zone)
Platforms	2 island platforms
Tracks	14
Connections	New York City Subway:   at Vernon Boulevard – Jackson Avenue MTA Bus: Q103 NY Waterway
Construction
Parking	Yes
Other information
Fare zone	1
History
Opened	June 26, 1854
Closed	December 18, 1902
Rebuilt	1861, 1870, 1875, 1878, 1879, April 1881, July 1891, April 26, 1903
Electrified	June 16, 1910 750 V (DC) third rail
Previous names	Hunter's Point
Traffic
Passengers (2006)	115
Services
Preceding station   LIRR   Following station Terminus Main Line (City Terminal Zone) Hunterspoint Avenue toward Long Island Preceding station   LIRR   Following station Terminus Montauk Branch (current and former locations) Penny Bridge station until 1998 Terminus Montauk Branch (current and former locations) Jamaica station 1998-2012

Long Island City is a rail terminal of the Long Island Rail Road in Long Island City, Queens. Located within the City Terminal Zone at Borden Avenue and Second Street, it is the westernmost LIRR station in Queens and the end of both the Main Line and Montauk Branch. The station is wheelchair accessible.

The station is served only during weekday rush hours in the peak direction (to Long Island City in the morning, from Long Island City in the evening) by diesel trains from the Oyster Bay, Montauk, or Port Jefferson Branches via the Main Line. There is a connection to the Lower Montauk Branch, but as of 12 November 2012^[update], no LIRR trains run on that branch, and the Lower Montauk is now leased to and controlled by the New York and Atlantic Railway, which uses the line exclusively for freight operations.

This station was built on June 26, 1854, and rebuilt seven times during the 19th Century. On December 18, 1902, both the two-story station building and office building owned by the LIRR burned down. The station was rebuilt on April 26, 1903, and electrified on June 16, 1910.

Before the East River Tunnels were built, this station served as the terminus for Manhattan-bound passengers from Long Island, who took ferries to the East Side of Manhattan. The passenger ferry service was abandoned on March 3, 1925, although freight was carried by car floats through Gantry Plaza State Park to and from Manhattan until the middle 20th century. Today, ferry service is operated by NY Waterway. The station house was torn down again in 1939 for construction of the Queens–Midtown Tunnel, but still continued to operate as an active station, as it does today.