Hempstead Town Supervisor Kate Murray and Councilman Edward Ambrosino stood by local village officials gathered Wednesday at the Floral Park Train Station to kick off a new petition drive opposing the Metropolitan Transportation Authority's (MTA) plan to add an additional track along the Long Island Rail Road's (LIRR) Main Line between Queens Village and Hicksville, which traverses communities like Bellerose Village, Floral Park, Stewart Manor, Garden City and more.

This latest attempt to thwart the billion-dollar MTA proposal follows up a petition drive held two years ago that successfully collected nearly 10,000 signatures.

"At a recent business association meeting in our area, Governor Spitzer announced that the LIRR third track proposal was one of his top priorities for Long Island," Supervisor Murray noted. "Today we are here to tell the governor that defeating the ill-advised third track plan is one of our top priorities."

The petitions, which will be collected during the spring and summer, will be delivered to Governor Spitzer and the MTA later this year, during the public comment period on the MTA's Third Track Draft Environmental Impact Statement (Sept. 1-Dec. 31, 2007).

Bellerose Village Mayor Donna Sherrer believes this renewed petition drive has more power behind it because more affected communities are now on board. She attended the April 25 press conference, along with Floral Park Mayor Phil Guarnieri, Floral Park's Third Track Task Force Chair and Trustee Tom Tweedy, former Floral Park mayor, Ann Corbett and others from the village, to show their continuing support in opposing a plan they believe would devastate their communities.

"We are happy with our efforts going forward and we must remain vigilant," Trustee Tweedy told the Dispatch. "One billion dollars of taxpayers' money must be spent wisely."

Mayor Guarnieri added, "We all realize that modern transportation has made the modern world, which is why we support East Side Access for more Manhattan destinations, why we support the elimination of dangerous on-grade crossings, why we support the modernization of the railroad's infrastructure. What we oppose is taxpayers bankrolling a billion-dollar boondoggle for a reverse commute that is not only unwanted but unneeded. Today, trains on the reverse commute are half-empty and railroad cars are closed because of lack of passengers. No wonder so many say that the MTA stands for 'Money Thrown Away.' The fact that the third track expansion will engender an economic renaissance in eastern Long Island is wishful thinking in the extreme. The truth is that this third track expansion will devastate communities along its path, seizing properties, creating traffic snarls and parking shortages ... It is time for Governor Spitzer and his powerful supporters to give the MTA third track proposal the burial it so richly deserves."

Officials further called on Governor Spitzer and the MTA to move forward with the railroad grade crossing elimination projects in several communities, viewing it as a "key priority" for safety and traffic mitigation along roadways. They want the elimination work to be viewed as a "separate and distinct project" - not linked to the proposed third track. "The safety of our commuters and pedestrians demands that grade crossing projects be pursued by the New York State Department of Transportation as a top priority," Councilman Ambrosino said. "Linking this work to the third track unnecessarily delays this important work."

Officials are further urging the MTA to repair its "existing tattered facilities" before pursuing a major new project. Holding up a railroad tie "pretzel," which holds the railroad tracks in place, Supervisor Murray illustrated the fact that the MTA can't even "properly maintain" its current infrastructure. "These potentially deadly pieces of steel have been falling from the tracks over our heads onto the pavement below," she said. "Despite the calls of local activist Bill Corbett [of Floral Park], begging the MTA to put up simple screening in order to avert disaster, the MTA has done nothing."

Supervisor Murray noted that two years ago she and Hempstead Town Receiver of Taxes Don Clavin uncovered what they believed to be "dangerous and unsanitary conditions" at local train stations, including Floral Park. "Falling concrete and steel, leaking pipes, exposed wiring and rampant bird droppings were only a few of our findings," she said. "If the MTA can't take care of this simple request, why would we trust them to build the monumental third track project?"

Residents opposing the construction of an additional track can send their signed petition - which is arriving in the mail - to the Town of Hempstead's office, located at One Washington Street in Hempstead. Despite the battle ahead, Supervisor Murray, along with local mayors, is confident that the "united voice of thousands of neighbors and public officials will prevail upon the governor."