LIRR ferries running empty
LIRR commuter Joan Hernandez got a private ferry ride across the East River from Long Island City to East 34th Street Monday morning. And it was not the first time. The evening rush is equally quiet. The 3:40 p.m. and 4:11 p.m. boats left 34th Street without a single passenger Monday afternoon. The often-empty boats, one all the way from Plymouth, Massachusetts, have been chartered by the MTA exclusively as an alternative option during the so-called Summer of Hell.
LIRR Derailed in Long Beach
MTA Chairman Joe Lhota told reporters late Tuesday morning that the Long Island Rail Road train that appeared to have gone of the track in Long Beach during the morning rush had in fact derailed.
Summer of Hell affecting subways
Forget the Summer of Hell; for riders of the No. 7 subway line, it is all four seasons of hell. Another day, another delay on the 7. Ever since track repair work began at Penn Station, the 7 line has been absorbing some LIRR commuter runoff. The additional crowding will last until September when the repair work at Penn Station is expected to be completed.
Summer of Hell Day 2: Commute not too bad
On Day 2 of what was dubbed the "Summer of Hell" hasn't quite lived up to its name. And for that, LIRR commuters are grateful. Many of the LIRR riders that spoke to Fox 5 said they usually commute in and out of Penn Station but have changed their plans because of the service disruptions.
Summer of Hell: Day 1 mostly smooth
Amtrak has begun 8 weeks of extensive track and equipment replacements at Penn Station, which is shutting down several tracks per day. MTA Chairman Joe Lhota said 7,000 fewer LIRR commuters came into Penn Station Monday morning. Instead, they got off at terminals in Brooklyn and Long Island City and then took either the subway, bus, or a ferry into Manhattan.
Summer of Hell: LIRR commute
The LIRR is running on a modified schedule through August as Amtrak makes critical track repairs at Penn Station. The system has been plagued by a series of high-profile meltdowns including derailments and power outages. LIRR commuter John Tomecek's prediction on how long it'd take to get to Penn Station from Mineola was near perfect.
Summer of Hell: Penn Station repairs begin
Amtrak has begun much-needed repair work on tracks and switches at Penn Station. Those repairs mean service cutbacks and changes. The doomsday commuting scenario that had been predicted failed to materialize Monday morning. But commuters are not totally in the clear. This is just the beginning. Amtrak's CEO said that all riders will benefit when new tracks are installed by the fall.
Penn Station repairs set to begin
The countdown to the nightmare for hundreds of thousands of commuters is on. A huge repair project starts Monday, July 10, at Penn Station. The two-month repair project will cost Amtrak about $40 million. Penn Station greets about 600,000 passengers a day. New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo predicted a "summer of hell." Commuters can't even begin to comprehend that it could get any worse. But it can and it will.
LIRR commute before track work begins
Jodi Goldberg took Long Island Rail Road into New York City Thursday and will again on Monday to compare the travel time once Amtrak begins crucial work at Penn Station. Morning commuters packed the platform. Officials estimate nearly 10,000 riders will be affected by the disruptions caused by the repair work.
Nightmare commute on MTA railroads
On the same day Gov. Andrew Cuomo declared a state of emergency for the MTA, the agency's two major commuter railroads suffered frustrating suspensions and delays. The Long Island Rail Road and Metro-North Railroad's services went off course, right on cue. These are the busiest commuter railroads in the nation. The delays remained on Metro-North through most of the evening commute. Trains were cancelled and condensed, leaving extra crowded conditions.
MTA state of emergency
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Thursday declared a state of emergency for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority to expedite subway repairs and replacements in the wake of rising delays and accidents. Cuomo made the announcement at a planned news conference for the MTA Transit Challenge, a competition that will award three $1 million so-called genius awards for the best ideas to fix the mass transit system. Cuomo said the MTA needs new ideas to solve the problems.
Joe Lhota returns to helm the MTA
Gov. Andrew Cuomo nominated Joe Lhota to lead the MTA once again. Lhota served as the MTA's chairman and CEO from October 2011 to December 2012. He resigned to run for New York City mayor but lost to Bill de Blasio. This time around, Lhota will serve as chairman and delegate the day-to-day CEO duties to a permanent executive director. Lhota was a top aide to Mayor Rudy Giuliani.
MTA, Amtrak at odds over money
Things just got a lot more complicated at Penn Station. As commuters brace for a tough two months ahead with delays and service changes as the station undergoes long-needed repairs, the MTA and Amtrak are locking heads over the Long Island Rail Road. At issue is who will pay for LIRR's contingency plan. Amtrak owns the station and the tracks and will perform the repairs. The MTA, which owns the LIRR, refuses to pay for the costs of implementing the schedule changes and alternate service for LIRR commuters. MTA Interim Executive Director Veronique Hakim said that the agency is looking to recover the expenses from Amtrak.
New concourse at Penn
Many train commuters are accustomed to old tracks, old cars, and an old Penn Station. But now commuters have a new way to get to the Long Island Rail Road tracks without having to navigate through chaos. Think of it as the West Wing. Not of the White House, but of the train terminal many commuters would prefer to avoid if only they could. A new ramp is now open that allows access directly to the LIRR tracks through entrances on 8th Avenue, steps from the A/C/E subway station.
MTA summer plan
The Long Island Rail Road has announced schedule changes in anticipation of summer construction work at Amtrak-managed Penn Station in New York City. The changes include providing ferry service for some customers, and a fleet of buses to carry affected rail riders into Manhattan.
NJ Transit summer schedule
New Jersey Transit released schedule changes Friday to accommodate this summer's extensive repair work at New York's Penn Station that is aimed at replacing aging parts and equipment that contributed to two recent derailments and numerous other failures.
Railroad tunnels in disrepair
Fed up with the bureaucratic finger-pointing, Sen. Chuck Schumer slammed Amtrak and the MTA Thursday. A bipartisan group of elected officials lined up at the Hicksville train station to demand repairs be made to the East River tunnels.
NJ Transit cutbacks
New Jersey Transit executives on Wednesday defended their decision to restrict service disruptions to one train line to accommodate Amtrak's major repair work at Penn Station this summer, as lawmakers said they would subpoena records to find out how the decision was reached.
LIRR power problems
Multiple Long Island Rail Road trains were delayed and canceled during the Tuesday morning rush due to an Amtrak third rail power issue in the East River tunnel, according to the MTA. Two LIRR trains were stuck underground for more than an hour as a result of the power loss. Amtrak said it was trying to determine the cause of the malfunction.
LIRR Delays
A power problem on an Amtrak third rail under the East River tunnel stranded commuters and caused major service delays and cancellations on the Long Island Rail Road.