NEW YORK (AP) — Trains are rolling again on the Long Island Rail Road after a deal was reached to end a strike that had shut down the busiest commuter rail system in the U.S.
The first trains departed from New York City’s two main rail hubs, Penn Station and Grand Central Terminal, shortly after noon Tuesday. Full service was planned in time for the evening rush home from work.
Michele Forrester, who relies on the LIRR to get to her job at a grocery on Long Island, was among the riders with mixed feelings about the apparent resolution to the system’s first walkout since a two-day strike in 1994.
“I just feel like it should not have gotten to this point in the first place,” she said Tuesday afternoon as she waited at the LIRR hub in the Jamaica neighborhood of Queens. “With how much they make, it feels like other people are struggling to get by, and they’re talking about getting more money.”
Nya Archie, a filmmaker from Queens headed into Manhattan, said the strike was an important reminder that working people are still vital to making New York possible.
“I’m happy they were able to stop people and make them realize, yes, this is a functioning, running machine, but it’s run by the people above anything,” she said. “And without the people, it’s not gonna move, it’s not gonna work and it’s gonna get uncomfortable. I really liked them making that heard.”
Labor union leaders, meanwhile, began briefing rank-and-file members about the contract terms, said Jamie Horwitz, a spokesperson for the five unions. Voting was expected to take place over the coming days according to each union’s contract ratification process.
Five labor unions representing about half the train system’s workforce went on strike at 12:01 a.m. Saturday, halting service for roughly 250,000 commuters who use the rail system that connects New York City to its eastern suburbs every weekday.
Earlier in the day, morning commuters had muddled through another tough rush hour. Trains weren’t ready for service in time for the commute into work as the agreement was reached late Monday.
The LIRR still urged riders to work from home again Tuesday. Shuttle buses were offered from a handful of locations on Long Island to subway stations in New York City.
Hallie Kessler was among the weary Long Island commuters who welcomed the strike’s end. With the trains out of service, the 24-year old speech therapist commuted three hours home from her job at a public school in the New York City borough of Queens on Monday.
“Obviously I wish trains would be running when peak hours start so I could avoid the long morning commute, but happy to not deal with it in the afternoon when I’m leaving work,” Kessler said. “Curious what the deal says about future fares, which has been a big concern, but we’ll see.”
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul and railroad officials have declined to disclose details of the new contract terms until they are approved by union members. But the Democrat, who is up for reelection, has stressed the deal won’t increase fares or taxes.
Robert Free, president of the LIRR, said Tuesday that the two sides simply “found another way” to make the numbers work.
“There are things in there that make it more affordable, make it more palatable for the unions to agree upon, and make it easier for us to fit within our financial structure,” he said shortly before the first trains departed.
The first impacts of the walkout were felt over the weekend, as baseball fans had to find other ways to get to Citi Field in Queens to see the New York Mets take on their crosstown rivals the New York Yankees.
Hochul said the deal ensures basketball fans won’t meet the same fate as they travel to watch the New York Knicks continue their playoff run on Tuesday night at Madison Square Garden, which is located directly above the LIRR’s Penn Station hub in Manhattan.
The unions — which represent locomotive engineers, machinists, signalmen and others — and the Metropolitan Transportation Authority had been negotiating a new contract since 2023, but talks had stalled over salaries and healthcare.
The unions have said raises were needed to help workers keep up with inflation and the rising cost of living in the New York City area. The MTA had said the union’s initial demands would lead to fare increases and set a difficult precedent for negotiations with other transit unions.
