LIRR resumes trains after tentative deal ends three-day strike
The Long Island Rail Road is now back up and running after the Metropolitan Transportation Authority and unions reached a tentative deal to end the strike.
The MTA said crews needed time to complete mandatory safety inspections and get employees back into position after about 3,500 union workers walked off the job Saturday morning.
A deal was reached just before 9 p.m. Monday after intense negotiations throughout the weekend. The three-day strike officially ended at midnight, but train service didn't resume until noon Tuesday.
The MTA's strike contingency plan remained in effect for Tuesday's morning rush, including the limited free shuttle bus service.
Is the LIRR running today?
Four major branches -- Port Washington, Huntington, Ronkonkoma and Babylon -- started having hourly service at noon.
Full service across the entire system, which serves around 300,000 riders, was restored by 4 p.m.
"It's good to be running trains again," LIRR President Rob Free said.
"It was difficult taking the cab in just to get to work. This is one of those things you don't really know you missed until it's gone. I was happy to see it again," commuter Dwayne Galop said.
Commuters had the option of working from home, driving in or taking a free shuttle. The shuttle service to Queens ran from 4:30 a.m. until 9 a.m.
The MTA said it had 13,000 seats available on the buses departing from six Long Island locations. Only 2,100 people took the bus Monday, transportation officials said.
Those who did try the shuttles on Monday found mixed results.
"Just a really big inconvenience. I gotta get to Bay Shore, so I'm going from here to Ronkonkoma, then have to find a way to get to Bay Shore ferry to work on Fire Island," a Queens resident said.
"I'm very glad it will be the last day because we're spending a lot of money for this," another rider said.
"I think it's a great thing because I think the workers need to get their money," commuter Fred Wilkins said.
"I have never appreciated the Long Island Rail Road as much as I do today," another commuter said.
Knicks fans heading to Game 1 of the NBA Eastern Conference finals at Madison Square Garden expressed relief as they arrived at Penn Station on Tuesday night.
"Oh my god, I was nervous. Last night, I was nervous. I just wanted to get to the city, you know, to see the Knicks," one fan said. "I am happy it's all back. We got the text last night at like midnight that everything was good."
"Empire state of mind right there, you know, just in time, just when we needed it," Knicks fan Alex Lima said.
LIRR strike update today
Five unions, from locomotive engineers to ticket booth agents, walked out of negotiations on Friday over the fourth year of a retroactive contract.
Sources say the MTA ultimately agreed to 4.5% raises in the final year, just half a percentage point less than the union ask -- with no concessions on their health insurance costs.
"I can't go into details about the agreement, but there are things in there that make it more affordable, make it more palatable for the unions to agree upon," Free said.
Mark Wallace, president of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen, said unions refused to budge and called the deal "victory ... by union members who stood their ground and refused to be pushed around."
The unions appeared to get what they wanted despite warnings from the MTA that their demands would lead to higher fares on top of the 4% hikes already planned.
Gov. Kathy Hochul said the new agreement would not require any additional fare increases or tax increases.
"It also ensured that we maintained our financial stability," Free said.
"I don't know how this got done"
"We cannot discuss the specifics, but what we can say is that we are looking forward to our members getting back to work and doing what they do best, which is serving the region," said union representative Kevin Sexton.
"The whole point was that we needed to find ways that we could give people fair raises but also structure it in a way that didn't blow the MTA's budget. We got it done," MTA Chairman and CEO Janno Lieber added.
Gerard Bringmann, the head of the LIRR Commuter Council, said he is awaiting the fine print.
"I don't know how this got done. How are they going to pay for this fourth year? As long as they can do it without the riders having to pick up any additional cost, we are good with it," Bringmann said.
The agreement is still being ratified by members of the unions. Once that's complete, it will have to be approved at a future MTA board meeting.
Employees who didn't go to work during the strike will not be paid for those days.
