New York State Transportation

Southwest Airlines Inc. said it will begin serving MacArthur Airport in Islip, N.Y., marking the latest move into the lucrative New York area for the nation's biggest budget carrier. Flights are expected to begin early next year to MacArthur, which is on Long Island about 40 miles east of New York's LaGuardia Airport. The Dallas-based airline is expected to create its own Washington-Boston shuttle linking Baltimore, MacArthur, Providence, R.I., and Manchester, N.H.

Southwest Airlines Inc. said it will begin serving MacArthur Airport in Islip, N.Y., marking the latest move into the lucrative New York area for the nation's biggest budget carrier. Flights are expected to begin early next year to MacArthur, which is on Long Island about 40 miles east of New York's LaGuardia Airport. The Dallas-based airline is expected to create its own Washington-Boston shuttle linking Baltimore, MacArthur, Providence, R.I., and Manchester, N.H.

The Long Island Rail Road, the nation's busiest commuter train service, was back in business by congressional order, but railroad officials said ridership was less than usual on the first day after an 11-day strike. A representative of the railroad reported that hundreds of people called about schedules for Monday, when 700 trains are expected to carry about 110,000 passengers to and from Manhattan.

Tuesday's massive telephone breakdown in New York, the fourth major disruption of a U.S. telecommunications network this year, underscores how cutthroat phone competition and reduced regulation have left the nation vulnerable to serious disruptions in commerce and communications, officials said Wednesday.

With tempers running short, exhausted union negotiators pushed back a strike deadline Saturday and gave themselves another day to reach agreement with the nation's largest commuter railroad. "I think the people just ran out of steam," Long Island Rail Road President Bruce McIver said, explaining why a deadline of 6 a.m. Saturday had been pushed back 24 hours.

The head of one of eight unions striking the Long Island Rail Road said he saw "light at the end of the tunnel" in the walkout, which has affected 150,000 commuters. Negotiators took the day off, but the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers held informal talks, said Joseph A. Cassidy Jr., its chairman. The sides were not really close, Cassidy said, but a plan by Rep. Norman F. Lent (R-N.Y.) to have Congress order the strikers temporarily back to work has provided impetus for a settlement.

The Long Island Rail Road settled with three more striking unions, but trains were idle for a ninth day on the nation's largest commuter line as five unions still lacked contracts. The Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers, the Police Benevolent Assn. and the International Brotherhood of Firemen and Oilers reached separate pacts with the railroad. Signalmen, train repairmen, metal workers, electricians and plumbers are still negotiating.

A garbage dump caught fire beneath Interstate 78 Monday, buckling the elevated roadway and causing a shutdown of the thoroughfare at one of the nation's busiest highway interchanges. "This is the most serious traffic emergency in my memory," said Gov. Thomas H. Kean, who flew over the site. "It could not have occurred in a worse place." Further problems linking the busy New York area with parts of Pennsylvania could occur if the blaze spreads south to rubbish beneath U.S.

The nation's busiest commuter railway shut down Sunday when contract negotiations failed between the Long Island Rail Road and 11 unions, idling 6,600 workers. "Operations on the railroad are now shut down," Long Island Rail Road spokesman Jim Burns said shortly after the strike over wages and benefits began at 6:01 a.m. The effects of the strike were minimal Sunday, a light ridership day, and were not expected to be fully felt today, the federal holiday honoring Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Tuesday's massive telephone breakdown in New York, the fourth major disruption of a U.S. telecommunications network this year, underscores how cutthroat phone competition and reduced regulation have left the nation vulnerable to serious disruptions in commerce and communications, officials said Wednesday.

A communications power failure at an American Telephone & Telegraph Co. switching station in Lower Manhattan Tuesday disrupted traffic control at the three major airports in the New York area, grounding all departures and severely limiting arrivals for several hours. All domestic flights to John F. Kennedy, La Guardia and Newark airports that were not already in the air at the time of the power failure were held on the ground throughout the United States.

A garbage dump caught fire beneath Interstate 78 Monday, buckling the elevated roadway and causing a shutdown of the thoroughfare at one of the nation's busiest highway interchanges. "This is the most serious traffic emergency in my memory," said Gov. Thomas H. Kean, who flew over the site. "It could not have occurred in a worse place." Further problems linking the busy New York area with parts of Pennsylvania could occur if the blaze spreads south to rubbish beneath U.S.

A New York state law that forbids loitering in subway, train or bus stations is unconstitutional because it puts people too much at the mercy of police, the state's top court ruled Wednesday. The law forbids people from sleeping in transportation facilities or staying there without giving authorities a "satisfactory explanation" of what they are doing. The Court of Appeals said the statute failed to give a "person of ordinary intelligence" notice that his conduct is against the law.

A total ban on smoking was imposed by two commuter rail lines that carry 200,000 passengers a day into New York City, but only one major incident was reported--a male passenger punched a conductor in the face when told to put out his cigarette. However, traffic was light on Presidents Day, and the real test will occur today, when passenger volume returns to normal.

The Long Island Rail Road, the nation's busiest commuter train service, was back in business by congressional order, but railroad officials said ridership was less than usual on the first day after an 11-day strike. A representative of the railroad reported that hundreds of people called about schedules for Monday, when 700 trains are expected to carry about 110,000 passengers to and from Manhattan.

The Long Island Rail Road settled with three more striking unions, but trains were idle for a ninth day on the nation's largest commuter line as five unions still lacked contracts. The Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers, the Police Benevolent Assn. and the International Brotherhood of Firemen and Oilers reached separate pacts with the railroad. Signalmen, train repairmen, metal workers, electricians and plumbers are still negotiating.

A communications power failure at an American Telephone & Telegraph Co. switching station in Lower Manhattan Tuesday disrupted traffic control at the three major airports in the New York area, grounding all departures and severely limiting arrivals for several hours. All domestic flights to John F. Kennedy, La Guardia and Newark airports that were not already in the air at the time of the power failure were held on the ground throughout the United States.