Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) today announced service updates that will go into effect Monday, March 13 to enhance service and increase frequency. Four trains that serve Grand Central Madison will be rerouted to serve Penn Station instead. The LIRR is also extending four morning peak trains on the Ronkonkoma Branch to serve two additional stations.

These changes are in addition to modifications made March 6 and 7, when rush hour service to Brooklyn was increased, reducing time between trains to between 7-8 minutes. Trains serving Penn Station were lengthened, and cars were added to all trains that had exceeded capacity the previous week. Riders also saw 30 more customer service staff throughout Jamaica station to assist riders and ease the transfer experience.

The week of March 6 saw the two highest days of LIRR ridership for 2023. On Tuesday, March 7, the LIRR carried 205,500 passengers, representing the second highest ridership day since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. On Wednesday, March 8, 203,000 customers rode the LIRR. From Monday, March 6 through Wednesday, March 8 the LIRR carried 595,000 customers, an 8.2 percent increase over the previous week.

-via Press Release