The Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA) announced its updated schedule for full Long Island Railroad service to Grand Central Madison later this month.
Weekday LIRR service will expand by 41% across the system. Close to 300 trains will serve Grand Central Madison daily. Every LIRR branch will service Grand Central. Interim LIRR President Catherine Rinaldi said that this was the “biggest service increase in LIRR history.”
Across the LIRR system, 936 trains will run daily.
The Port Jefferson and Ronkonkoma lines will see reverse-peak service for the first time ever.
Janno Lieber, the MTA chair and chief executive officer, said, “Faster, more convenient travel that brings Long Island closer to the heart of the City will be a major shot in the arm for the local economy and the effort to get people back to offices, theaters, and shopping.”
The Ronkonkoma Branch will see service increase by 50%, aided by the opening of the Main Line Third Track and other developments in recent years. Similarly, service on the West Hempstead Branch will rise by 50%. The LIRR will also boost service on the Port Jefferson Branch by 39%, adding 38 trains on weekdays.
The Babylon Branch will see a service increase of 24% with more trains going directly to Manhattan. Weekend service will also see a 28% increase.
Far Rockaway will see a massive rise in the number of direct trains to and from Manhattan, growing from eight trains before the service change to 60 trains daily when the new schedules take effect.
The Oyster Bay and Port Washington lines will see modest increases in service of 10% and 14% respectively when the new schedules take effect.
