Update 6:02 p.m.:
Rail riders at the Noroton Heights Railroad Station headed in the direction of Grand Central late in the afternoon walked over bridge plates to board a train (see attached picture).
There were no bridge plates installed on the south ("northbound") side of the tracks, and riders were boarding on the usual side of the station (to the right of the trains).
Update 3:50 p.m.:
Train service on the New Canaan Branch, affecting New Canaan, Talmadge Hill, Glenbrook and Springdale railroad stations, is expected to return at 6 p.m., a Metropolitan Transportation Authority spokeswoman said.
Service from the Noroton Heights, Darien and Rowayton stations has been complicated by the track repair work, so train riders were boarding from the opposite side of the station and walking over "bridgeplates" — described by Marjorie Anders, a spokeswoman for the MTA, as "metal gangplanks" over the tracks.
"We're expecting to resume normal train service at 6 p.m.," Anders said Tuesday afternoon. Buses have been running between the stations and the downtown Stamford railroad station. "We do have backup buses on order in case they're not ready with the track," she said.
As a result of the Interstate 95 truck accident at about 4:40 a.m., she said, two utility poles, part of a guardrail and a fender fell on the tracks, damaging catenary lines hanging above the tracks.
Here's the text of Anders' full statement to news organizations:
"Still busing in both directions. Regular service expected to resume at 6 p.m., but as a precaution, buses have been ordered and are on standby for the PM rush.
"At about 4:40 a.m. a truck driving on I-95 where it crosses over the New Canaan Branch, struck two utility poles. One of the poles fell down to the tracks below and took out the overhead catenary wire. Also, some pieces of the guard rail and the truck’s fender also fell onto the tracks.
"MNR Power Department crews are on the scene removing debris and rebuilding the wires. No estimate of a return of train service on the New Canaan branch, which is used by about 1,900 people during the AM peak.
"Because of the location of the wire damage, it was necessary for the railroad forces to erect “bridgeplates” at Noroton Heights, Darien and Rowayton on the Main New Haven Line. These are like gangplanks and they span the inbound local track, which is out of service due to the wire damage, in order for people to be able to board a train that is stopped on the inner track.
"Because traffic is heaviest in the inbound/NYCbound/westbound direction during the AM peak, it was necessary to run the service on the “opposite side.” This means people had to cross over to what is normally the outbound/eastbound/New Haven bound side, to catch a train to NYC.
"This is done because the bridgeplates are narrow and boarding is slow. An opposite side operation allows higher volumes of customers to board simultaneously because a station may only have one or two bridge plates, so not all doors of the train can open.
"Meanwhile, buses are taking customers from the four branch stations (New Canaan, Talmadge Hill, Springdale and Glenbrook) to Stamford, where they are boarding regular trains. And vice versa."
Update 1:33 p.m.:
Rail service was still out at the Nee Canaan train station at 1:15 p.m. and buses were taking travelers to the Stamford train station.
An accident at roughly 5:30 a.m. involving a truck on Interstate 95 led to debris falling on the track for the New Haven Line, a Metro-North official said.
Metro-North Railroad released this statement about Tuesday morning's disrupted train service on the New Canaan Branch:
Limited bus service is currently being provided on the New Canaan Branch until further notice due to a truck accident which caused wire damage to our catenary system.
Customers are urged to seek alternate transportation to Stamford station. Please listen for announcements at your station
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