As Next Storm Barrels Down On Region, Snow Finally Cleared From LNP — 11 Days After Blizzard First Hit

Update, Jan. 6, 5:58 p.m.: Earlier this evening, sanitation workers removed two large snowbanks blocking the only thru lane heading south on Little Neck Parkway at 39th Road, according to resident Larry Sheehan. 

Recycling yet to be picked up was placed at the curb. 

The final snow removal from LNP comes 11 days after the blizzard hit and one day before the next snowstorm — with forecasts of as much as 5 inches — is scheduled to arrive.

Trash day, anyone?

Motorists traveling south on Little Neck Parkway at 39th Road face a tricky situation due to a mix of snow and uncollected garbage blocking the only lane through the busy intersection.

According to resident Larry Sheehan, one driver making a left turn was enough to create what he called a 15-car backup across the Long Island Railroad tracks near Little Neck station.

"It's another situation where we we have motorists stuck on the tracks," Sheehan said, referring one of the city's only — and residents would say, most troublesome — at-grade railroad crossings.

Meanwhile, the embattled city Department of Sanitation announced the suspension of alternate side parking rules through Saturday in an attempt to expedite trash pickup that, in some cases, hasn't been performed since the blizzard hit on Dec. 26-27.

The trash, located in front of a line of residences on the 39-00 block of Little Neck Parkway, is the latest incident in a rough couple of months for drivers traveling immediately north and south of the LIRR tracks and Sandhill ("The Back") Road.

In the fall, the city Department of Transportation installed on LNP north of the tracks, along with removing a No U-Turn sign.

Residents largely the DOT's changes, saying they created a dangerous situation that caused some motorists to become "stuck" on busy LIRR tracks.

Last month, DOT tried to remedy community concerns by creating a new "Safety Zone,"   the median approximately 30 feet north on LNP to dissuade drivers from making ill-advised U-turns on the busy thoroughfare.