The Roundabout Way to the Rockaways.
A Far Rockaway-bound LIRR train is seen arriving at Gibson Station, the first station after the line branches away from the Atlantic and Babylon Branches. The Far Rockaway Branch takes the less-direct route to Far Rockaway through Nassau County staying on "mainland" Long Island, versus the Subway, which goes "out to sea" via Jamaica Bay. These two routes were originally one line, which looped through Nassau County and over Jamaica Bay. A trestle fire severely damaged the overwater route, at which point the struggling rail road sold it to the NYC Board of Transportation for incorporation into the Subway.
Locomotive-hauled trains extend LIRR service from Midtown New York to the eastern reaches of the North and South Forks. Power has gone through four generations since steam service ended.
