Early history

Rockville Centre station was originally built by the South Side Railroad of Long Island on October 28, 1867 and remodeled in July 1881.^{[citation needed]} The station was rebuilt on October 14, 1901,^{[citation needed]} as the original station was moved to a private location that year and razed in 2004.^[4]

Grade crossing elimination project

The second station was razed in March 1949 as part of a grade elevation project that would dominate the Babylon Branch throughout the post-WWII era. A temporary station was built southeast of the former location between April 19 and April 22, 1949.^{[citation needed]}

Rockville Centre station was the site of a major railroad accident on February 17, 1950 that resulted in the deaths of 32 people, and serious injury of over 100 people.^[5] This occurred nine months before a similar accident in Kew Gardens, Queens that killed 79 people, and injured hundreds more. The current elevated structure was opened on July 17–18, 1950, and renovated toward the end of the 20th Century.^{[citation needed]}

Station renovation

On August 2, 1982, work began on a $1.2 million project to extend the platform from 800 to 1,000 feet (240 to 300 m) to accommodate 12-car trains. The concrete platform at the station would be completely replaced.^[6] The project was to be done in multiple phases, and was scheduled to be completed in October 1983.^[7] As part of the project, the bathrooms and waiting room at the station were repainted, the stairway to the west of the lower level waiting room was replaced, and a new stairway would be built at the far western end of the platform. In addition, an elevator was to be constructed at the station. In August 1983, the LIRR awarded the contract to construct the new stairway. A dedication ceremony for the project took place on January 25, 1984. At that time, the elevator was slated to be completed in spring 1984.^[8][9]

In March 1985, the contract for the new stairway was cancelled since the manufacturer did not provide any design drawings. The contract was rebid and was awarded again in August 1985, with an estimated cost of $30,000. At the same time, the only existing staircase at the western end of the station had been removed, and would not be replaced until October 1985. Since the LIRR was unable to reduce the six-to-seven-month time period needed to fabricated the stairs, it was not able to get them installed by November 1985, and set a new completion date of February 1, 1986. In January 1986, work began on the installation of the new western stairway, but stopped after two days as the LIRR said the manufacturer made measurement mistakes. Work resumed later that month, and was expected to be completed by the end of the month.^[9]