[UPDATED] Steering Clear of Problems After Sandy: A Road and Rail Update for East Lyme, Old Lyme, Lyme

Hurricane Sandy tore up a lot of roads in East Lyme, flooded roads in Old Lyme, and scattered debris in Lyme. Here's a status report on which roads are open, which are an obstacle course, and which are closed completely.

East Lyme

As of 10 p.m. Wednesday, three roads remain totally impassable and about 20 are partially obstructed.  

Totally closed:

• Attawan Avenue; 
• Beach Avenue (by Niantic Bay Yacht Club); 
• Lake Avenue to Meadow Street.

Partial blockages have been reported on the following roads:

• Sunrise Avenue
• Sunrise between Sea Breeze and Sea View
• Sea View Avenue
• 468 Boston Post Road is one lane
• South Beechwood Road
• South Ridge Road
• West Pattagansett at Giants Neck
• Clark Street (last three houses blocked off but not totally inaccessible)
• Intersection of Sunset Belair and Ridge Trail
• There are two brush piles at the corner of Cherry Street and High Street
• There's a limb with power lines at Manwaring and Barrett

The following roads had been blocked but as of 5:30 p.m. Thursday were open:

• Birch Trail
• 28 Billow Road
• Grassy Hill Road (open but beware of downed wires)
• Hillcrest
• Indianola Road (open but beware of downed wires)
• Blackpoint (open but beware of downed wires)
• Lake View Circle
• Pine Grove Road  
• Old Blackpoint  
• West Lane
• South Washington
• Shore Road

(Please note, there may be other roads with blockages that have not been reported to public safety and some of the roads listed above may be cleared today.)

Old Lyme and Lyme

Initial floodwaters have receded. Roads previously blocked by high water from streams now passable. Future high tides are not anticipated to be dangerous. 

Route 156 and Route 1 (Boston Post Road) are passable with no obstructions. No roadway damage has been identified at this time.

As of 10 p.m. last night, the following roads had been cleared: 

• Lyme St. (both lanes)
• McCurdy Rd. (both lanes)
• Brighton Beach Rd.
• Oakridge Drive
• Smiths Neck Rd.
• Academy Lane
• Sill Lane  

Crews are currently working on blockages and clearing debris on:

• Buttonball Road
• Browns Lane
• Mile Creek 

An earlier report at 6 p.m. on Wednesday also noted that there were blockages or debris on Whippoorwill Road, Champlain Drive, and Bailey Road. The status of those roads was not updated, so proceed with caution in case they have not yet been cleared.   

In Lyme: All town roads except Mitchell Hill Road, which the town was working on clearing on Wednesday, are open to traffic.

Public Transportation 

Bus Service: 9 Town Transit is operating the southeast shuttle daily from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Dial‐A‐Ride is operational dependent on road conditions.

Rail Service resumes today: Trains will begin running again today but on a limited basis (roughly half of normal weekday service to start for Metro-North). In the case of Metro-North, this limited service applies only to trains that originate in Stamford, not to service that normally originates in New Haven and stops in Stamford on its way to Grand Central.

• Shore Line East commuter rail service, between New Haven and New London, will resume Thursday morning.  
• Amtrak will begin operating some limited service between New Haven and Springfield, and between Boston and Washington DC.
• Commuter rail service between Stamford and New York’s Grand Central Terminal will resume Thursday morning, following three days of suspended service as a result of the damage and havoc caused by Hurricane Sandy. 
• Gov. Dannel Malloy has waived all rail fares for Thursday and Friday's Metro-North rail service, making rides into Grand Central free for the next two days from Stamford to New York.  
• Metro-North lines from New Haven to Grand Central are not yet back in service. There is a huge amount of debris (even a boat!) that still needs to be cleared from the tracks. Metro-North and the Connecticut Department of Transportation are evaluating some interim express bus options for the east end of the line and hope to see the entire system – from New Haven to Grand Central – return to full service as quickly as possible.

Rail information comes from a press release issued by Gov. Dannel Malloy's office.