Far Rockaway (LIRR station)

For the former LIRR station at Mott Avenue, now a subway station, see Far Rockaway – Mott Avenue (IND Rockaway Line).

Far Rockaway
File:Far Rockaway LIRR terminal.jpg Looking northeast at the station
Location	Nameoke Street & Redfern Avenue, off Central Avenue Far Rockaway, New York
Coordinates
Owned by	MTA
Line(s)
Platforms	1 island platform
Tracks	2
Connections	New York City Subway at Far Rockaway – Mott Avenue MTA Bus: Q22, Q113 Nassau Inter-County Express: n31, n32, n33 Rockaway Car Service
Construction
Parking	Yes
Disabled access	Yes
Other information
Fare zone	4
History
Opened	July 29, 1869 (SSRRLI)
Rebuilt	July 15, 1890, February 21, 1958
Electrified	December 11, 1905 750 V (DC) third rail
Traffic
Passengers (2006)	316
Services
Preceding station   LIRR   Following station Inwood toward New York terminals Far Rockaway Branch Terminus

Far Rockaway (sometimes referred to as Far Rockaway—Nameoke Street) is the terminus of the Long Island Rail Road's Far Rockaway Branch in the Far Rockaway neighborhood of Queens in New York City. The station is located at Nameoke Street and Redfern Avenue, and is 23.0 miles (37 km) from Penn Station in Midtown Manhattan, and mean travel time is 56 minutes, although most off-peak trains require a transfer for service to Penn Station.

As the Far Rockaway Branch loops back through Nassau County and is in zone 4, this station is not eligible for the CityTicket program.

History

Far Rockaway station was originally built by the South Side Railroad of Long Island on July 29, 1869. From 1872 to 1877, the station was located in close proximity to the southern terminus of the LIRR's Cedarhurst Cut-off. The original station house was converted into a freight house, and replaced by the 2nd station which was moved from Ocean Point Station (a.k.a. Cedarhurst Station), remodeled, and opened on October 1, 1881. The 3rd depot opened on July 15, 1890, while the 2nd depot was sold and moved to a private location in October 1890. From 1897 to 1926 the Ocean Electric Railway used Far Rockaway station as both the eastern terminus and as their headquarters. It also served as the terminus of a Long Island Electric Railway trolley line leading to Jamaica. The tracks and platforms were elevated as with much of the Far Rockaway Branch on April 10, 1942.

The Far Rockaway Branch had originally been part of a loop that traveled along the existing route, continuing through the Rockaway Peninsula and heading on a trestle across Jamaica Bay through Queens where it reconnected with the Atlantic, and Lower Montauk, branches, and even the Main Line. Frequent fires and maintenance problems led the LIRR to abandon the Queens portion of the route, which was acquired by the city to become the IND Rockaway Line, with service provided by the A train. The line was divided with the portions from Mott Avenue becoming part of the subway system on January 16, 1958, and the current Far Rockaway station becoming not only the terminus of the LIRR branch on February 21, 1958, but also the newest station on the branch.

Platform and track configuration

1	■ Far Rockaway Branch	toward New York (Inwood)
2	■ Far Rockaway Branch	toward New York (Inwood)

This station has one 10-car-long island platform. The Far Rockaway Branch has two tracks at this location. North of the station, the two tracks merge, then split into four tracks.

External links

Media related to at Wikimedia Commons

• Official LIRR station information page for Far Rockaway
• Station timetable for Far Rockaway
• Far Rockaway Station (The SubwayNut)
• Old Far Rockaway Station (c. 1905) and "FW" Tower (1907) (Arrt's Arrchives)
• Far Rockaway Station photos; 1915-1957 (TrainsAreFun)
• Station House from Google Maps Street View