By Jim Scott
DNAinfo Senior Editor
MANHATTAN —Manhattan commuters hoping for a return of normal service on the Long Island Railroad may be in for more delays on Monday if workers don't finish repairs this weekend.
"The LIRR may have to continue running a reduced a.m. and p.m. rush-hour schedule on Monday," the LIRR told the New York Post on Friday.
A cable fire knocked out the switch on Monday and crews have been checking, repairing and testing the 200 wires, 77 switching points and 53 signals it controls, according to the LIRR.
Crews testing repairs to a switch at Jamaica Station found "additional damage" that will extend the process by several more days, the LIRR said in a statement.
Service on Saturday is close to normal, according to a LIRR spokesman. The LIRR has been giving daily updates on their website and has also released a YouTube video explaining the nature of the repairs.
All week the railroad has operated on a reduced schedule running just 75 percent of its morning rush hour trains and 68 percent of those in the evening.
The railroad's roughly 178,000 daily rush hour commuters have faced extra long trips and canceled trains as MTA crews worked around the clock to make repairs.
