MTA prepares for snow, says city trains and buses will run on time

MTA officials braced for what could be the largest snowfall accumulation of the year Tuesday as a nor’easter bore down on the boroughs.

“No matter what happens, MTA’s going to be ready,” agency Chairman Janno Lieber said at a press conference at Manhattan’s Michael J. Quill bus depot.

“If you are traveling, MTA will be operating and we intend to get you where you’re headed.”

Snowfall in the city could reach 8 inches Tuesday, with at least half a foot predicted.

For the first time in two years, transit officials fitted MTA buses with snow chains in anticipation of the accumulation.

Subways, buses and paratransit systems are all expected to run on schedule, as is the Long Island Rail Road, Lieber said.

Metro-North Railroad chief Catherine Rinaldi said the commuter line would be operating on a “modified” schedule. The northernmost reaches of the system could see as much as a foot of snow.

In addition to snow chains, NYC Transit planned to pull the longer, articulated buses out of service Tuesday morning, given their relative difficulty maneuvering in icy conditions.

Meanwhile, crews were fitting LIRR trains with special third-rail “scraper” shoes, meant to clear ice and snow from the powered rail.

On the subway, where 220 miles of the system are above ground, 4,000 workers are preparing for the storm overnight, said subway boss Demetrius Crichlow.

In addition to storing trains indoors or underground, teams will be de-icing the system’s switches and third rails throughout the storm, officials said.

At the MTA’s bridges and tunnels, some 9,100 tons of roadway de-icer were on hand if needed, Lieber said.