Senator Craig M. Johnson announces that The New York State Department of Transportation will be holding a Sept. 20 public hearing on a rail-freight project that will have a real impact on the MTA's controversial Third Track expansion.

The project, the Long Island Truck - Rail Inter Modal Facility at the former Pilgrim State Hospital site in Kings Park, will make it easier to transfer freight from tractor trailers to rail beds.

Senator Johnson, (D-Nassau), said that while the project is located in Suffolk County, it, coupled with the Third Track, "could have a real impact on the quality of life in Bellerose, Floral Park, New Hyde Park, Garden City Park, Garden City, Carle Place, Mineola, Hicksville, and the surrounding communities."

"This and the Third Track are among a series of interconnected rail expansion projects in the region," Senator Johnson said. "What happens in Kings Park can very well affect what happens in our own communities. I urge anyone who can make it to this hearing to attend and make sure that your voice is heard."

The hearing is slated to be held from 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. at the Suffolk Community College Brentwood Campus, in the Sagtikos Arts and Science Building/ Van Nostrand Theater. The campus is situated between Wicks and Crooked Hill roads.

Recently, Senator Johnson was able to secure a 61-day extension for written public comments on the LITRIM project amid concerns that Nassau residents were not properly informed of the proposal's ramifications. The New Hyde Park Save Our Village Association first brought this issue to Senator Johnson's attention.

The new deadline for written comments is Sept. 24.

Comments can be mailed to:

The LITRIM Project Team

NYS Department of Transportation

Region 10 Long Island

250 Veterans Memorial Highway

Hauppauge, NY 11788

Project Identification Number: 0339.12 and 0339.13

They can also be e-mailed tolongislandintermodal@jacplanning.com.

The Draft Environmental Impact Statement on the Inter Modal Facility is available online at:www.longislandintermodal.com.