10 LIRR Trains Added To Address Riders’ Complaints About Crowding

LONG ISLAND, NY — The Long Island Rail Road added 10 trains to its service — bolstering trains on the Babylon and Montauk branches — on Tuesday after riders aired concerns over service cuts led to overcrowding on trains, officials said.

The trains were added after LIRR officials monitored patterns, saying they were “committed to continually adjusting as riders return” to the railroad, officials said in a news release stated. The new trains include four new Babylon Branch trains, and there will be Babylon Branch stops added to two trains from Speonk on the Montauk line.

Morning service will include a 5 a.m. local train from Babylon to Penn Station, a 5:54 a.m. train from Massapequa Park, as well as stops through Rockville Centre, Jamaica and Penn stations; and a 6:40 a.m. Freeport train, which stops at Baldwin, Rockville Centre, Jamaica and Penn stations.
Another train will be added at 4:20 a.m. with westbound service from Speonk that will add stops at Massapequa and Wantagh. Another 5:15 a.m. train from Speonk will also add stops at Amityville and Wantagh. In the afternoon, there will be a 5:10 p.m. local train from Penn Station travelling to Babylon.

Three westbound trains were added to service on the Hempstead, Port Jefferson and Ronkonkoma branches also. A train will depart Ronkonkoma at 4:50 a.m., stopping at Farmingdale, Bethpage, Hicksville, Westbury, Carle Place, Mineola, Merillon Avenue, New Hyde Park, Floral Park, then Jamaica and Penn stations.

There will also be 6:20 a.m. train from Farmingdale to Penn Station and a 6:35 a.m. train from Hicksville to Penn Station. In the afternoon, a 3:39 p.m. train was added from Penn Station to Ronkonkoma.

LIRR President Phil Eng said the agency will continue to monitor ridership levels and adjust service where possible and urged riders to use their Train Time app to track real-time customer loading information to find the least crowded cars on any train.