LIRR Offers New Discount Tickets For Queens, Brooklyn Stations

JAMAICA, QUEENS -- Commuters in Queens and Brooklyn who use Long Island Rail Road to get to the Atlantic Terminal can expect to see a little extra money in their pockets, at least for the next six months.

The MTA recently rolled out a weekly "Atlantic Ticket" that, for $60, covers travel between 10 LIRR stations - seven in Queens and three in Brooklyn - and includes a free seven-day unlimited MetroCard. A one-way LIRR ticket between any of those stations is also available for just $5, the agency said.

These stations are included in the program:

Queens

• Hollis
• Jamaica
• Laurelton
• Locust Manor
• Queens Village
• Rosedale Albans

Brooklyn

• Atlantic Terminal
• East New York at Atlantic Avenue
• Nostrand Avenue

The MTA is offering the discounted ticket as part of a six-to-12-month study to determine whether lower fares will attract more riders, said Chairman Joe Lhota.

Part of that study cuts the usual price of a $10.25 one-way peak LIRR ticket in half or shaves off a third of the $7.75 off-peak rate.

"This one-way fare is intended to attract customers traveling occasionally, or interested in trying out LIRR before purchasing the weekly pass," Lhota said.

The $60 unlimited-rise pass, on the other hand, is designed for commuters interested in more frequent travel between the stations. It offers a nearly 43 percent discount off the $104.25 the two cards would normally cost, according to the MTA.

"The LIRR is (an) asset for the city, and city residents may not be taking full advantage of it, so we want to see if this lower fare encourages more city residents to use the service," said LIRR President Phil Eng.

The MTA will also use the study to see whether current LIRR customers who travel to Penn Station would switch their travel to Atlantic Terminal. The agency offered discounts to the Brooklyn terminal last summer, when service to Penn Station was interrupted by track reconstruction work.

Customers can buy the weekly and one-way discount fares at ticket machines or sales offices, but they won't be available on the MTA's eTix app or aboard trains, the agency said.

Several Queens elected officials joined the MTA at the Queens Village LIRR station earlier this month to celebrate the Atlantic Ticket's debut.

“Residents in southeast Queens have some of the longest commute times to work in the entire City of New York," said Borough President Melinda Katz. "The reduced fare Atlantic Ticket will make ridership on the LIRR a more attractive option for many more Queens residents."

Queens City Councilman I. Daneek Miller also celebrated the reduced fare and faster commute time his residents would have access to after the "prolonged and costly commutes" he said they'd long endured from the far reaches of Southeast Queens.

“After years of planning, organizing, and campaigning, we are one step closer towards our goal of achieving commuter rail equity for all underserved New Yorkers," Miller said.

Lead image by Patch.