LTV Squad Explores the Montauk Cutoff in Long Island City

Looking west over Borden, former Montauk Steel warehouses to the left

What the bogies look like when loaded with trailers. Photo by Albert Castelli c/o Steve Lynch’s excellent LIRR history site.

The northwest end of the Montauk cutoff as seen at Thomson avenue – the cutoff is the set of tracks rising left to right on a concrete ramp. Note that the track on the right, leading to the bogies, has its switch severed

M cabin drawbridge. You can see trash cars parked for Waste Management just on the other side.

Views of the city skyline from the Skillman avenue end of the cutoff

Original LIRR position signal still lit and in place

The bogies at Hunterspoint avenue overpass

1908 date under Hunterspoint Avenue overpass

Builders plate on as seen on one of the overpasses.

This is a 1982 photo of a long inbound freight LIRR freight train arriving in ‘Yard A’ at sunnyside, as seen from the Honeywell Avenue bridge. You can see the 7 train and CN West factory in the distance. The train is being lead by 4 “C420” freight locomotives built by the American Locomotive Company, located in upstate NY – they’re still painted in a red white & blue paint job applied to many LIRR locomotives in celebration of the 1976 US bicentennial.

A short LIRR freight train crossing Hunterspoint Avenue on the Cutoff in 1988. Note that there’s a caboose right behind the locomotive – the LIRR regularly used them on freight trains right up until the early 1990s.

A set of LIRR ‘GP-38-2’ locomotives entering the ‘Mainline’ Cutoff at Thomson Avenue in 1989 (Queens blvd is in the background – the mainline cutoff is merely the ramp from the montauk cutoff into Harold interlocking)

A string of 5 locomotives running northbound across M cabin drawbridge in the mid 1990s. Note the World Trade Center towers in the background – and the absence of the Greenpoint ‘digester eggs’. Also note the tour bus parking lot on the right (now a cement factory). To the left just out of view is where Seaporcel metals was located.

Serious graffiti art near 51st avenue – Looks to be the work of Dek and Glue

51nd avenue overpass – complete with disgusting light pollution from Fresh Direct’s obnoxious billboard

Notation on the side of the Hunterspoint Avenue overpass is date stamped for August 1994 – the last time it was painted

Final stream passenger train on Long Island – Photo by Art Huneke – view is looking southeast, Skillman avenue is in the foreground.

NY&A ‘Caboose hop’ special run seen at Arch street, loading passengers before crossing the montauk cutoff

‘Derail‘ just before Borden avenue bridge

The LTV Squad could possibly be one of the City's first modern-day urban explorers. For the past several decades, they have been sneaking into abandoned areas all around the City, then sharing photos of their explorations.

In a recent article titled The Montauk Cutoff, the squad posts a ton of photos and explains the history behind the LIC train yard.

There has been a ton of talk lately about what will become of the Montauk Cutoff. While the future remains unknown, its past is surprisingly more interesting than has thus far been reported.

Check out the full article for more photos and history of The Montauk Cutoff.

via LTV Squad

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Hunterspoint Avenue

Queens, NY 11101

Matt Coneybeare

Editor in Chief

Matt enjoys exploring the City's with his partner and son. He is an avid marathon runner, and spends most of his time eating, running, and working on cool stuff.

Posts by Matt Coneybeare

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