Subways are set to start running by Monday morning’s rush hour, ending a 42-hour shutdown caused by Hurricane Irene.

Gov. Cuomo and Metropolitan Transportation Authority Chairman Jay Walder said Sunday night that commuters can expect most subway lines to be operating by 6 a.m.

Walder said a precautionary inspection of equipment and rails was going faster than expected, allowing officials to open the subway sooner than had been anticipated.

“We still have a lot of work to do in parts of our 5,000-mile territory that were hit extremely hard by the storm, but we can now see very visible progress,” Walder said.

With limited exceptions, subways across the system should be rolling by daybreak. Walder advised straphangers to check the MTA website for the latest updates before leaving home.

He said service in the Rockaways will remain suspended and warned that some express trains will run local and shuttle buses will be needed to link stations in other areas.

Walder warned that service will initially be slower than normal for a Monday, but vowed it will improve as the day progresses.

(Source: NY Daily News)