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Closing LIRR gaps expected to cost $13M: MTA

By Adam Pincus

The officials made a presentation at a state Senate hearing in Syosset, L.I. Feb. 8, six months after the death of 18-year-old Minnesota student Natalie Smead, who fell into the gap at the Woodside station and was struck by another train as she sought to get out.The railroad has spent $3.2 million so far and expects to spend another $10 million on repairs and actions related to reducing the gap, LIRR spokeswoman Susan McGowan said Monday. The railroad was looking to narrow the gaps at 32 platforms at 22 stations, including the Hunters Point Avenue, Flushing Main Street and Murray Hill stops.Officials said the number of reported gap incidents systemwide nearly doubled to 106 in 2006 from previous years “We are seeing a higher number reported,” McGowan said, up from an average of about 60 in prior years.A recent gap incident in Jamaica furthered underscored the dangers posed by the space that can be up to 9 inches or 10 inches between the train cars and the platform.Chantel Bordeau, of Brooklyn and her 5-year-old son were waiting for the 4:30 p.m. train to Baldwin Sunday when the boy's leg slipped into the gap. His mother, holding his hand, never let him fall, but he did suffer some scrapes, McGowan said. He was treated after arriving in Baldwin, she said.The fatal incident at Woodside also triggered the second federal probe into the gap between the train and the platform. Representatives from government, public transportation and railroads met Tuesday and Wednesday in Cambridge, Mass. to discuss whether to develop nationwide safety standards for the width of the gap in commuter rails such as the LIRR.The first federal investigation was launched by the National Transportation Safety Board, which was taking a look at the safety of the commuter rail lines, but it has not yet been completed.State Sen. John Sabini (D-Jackson Heights), who attended the hearing in Syosset, said the Metropolitan Transportation Authority has been more responsive to the railroad's problems since Gov. Eliot Spitzer chose Elliot Sander to take the reins as head of the embattled agency.”I am not satisfied up to now that the issue has been solved, but let's let the new folks at the MTA move forward,” he said.Reach reporter Adam Pincus by e-mail at news@timesledger.com or by phone at 718-229-0300, Ext. 154.