One-third of all of the MTA’s claims resulting from flood and wind damage from last year’s Tropical Storms Irene and Lee were from crippling of the Port Jervis Line, which had sections decimated with rail beds washed out and rails torn up and left as twisted masses of steel.
MTA spokesman Aaron Donovan said $65 million in losses were suffered by the entire transportation system.
“Metro-North’s claims for damages are approximately $27 million of which $21 million is dedicated our West of Hudson service, mainly the Port Jervis Line,” Donovan said. “Metro-North repairs came in well below the initial estimates made immediately after the storms and were completed expeditiously in just under three months.”
FEMA typically reimburses about 75 percent of approved costs. That recovery is expected to cover a significant portion of the MTA’s $25 million insurance deductible.
The insurers are reviewing the claim and already made a $5 million advance payment.
There were 50 washouts that added up to two miles of right-of-way gone between Suffern and Harriman, some to depths of eight feet. Reconstruction work on the Port Jervis Line was accomplished largely by MTA crews.
