Amidst the hectic opening to Grand Central Madison service on the LIRR, the MTA announced they would continue to address rider complaints starting next week.
“We’ve noticed a few red flags right away. There was crowding on trains to Penn caused by higher than expected ridership as people are accustoming themselves to the new schedule and the frequency of Atlantic Shuttle services to Brooklyn,” Interim President of LIRR Catherine Rinaldi said on Thursday.
Overcrowding and confusion have defined the new train schedule, which has left many riders frustrated, particularly in places like Oyster Bay on Long Island, or Brooklyn in the boroughs; as well as for those who never intended to switch their commute to the East Side. That last group, the non-switchers, has been the biggest surprise to Rinaldi, who has said the MTA overestimated how many would transition to the new terminal.
The MTA is moving trains back to Penn and adding additional stops for trains for increased service. This comes on top of the additional Brooklyn service already added, but these changes are far from the ones needed to fully fix the issue. While there were some signs of improvement this week, there were still many riders complaining of overcrowded trains, longer travel times and too many transfers–not to mention the unfamiliarity with the new terminal and scarcity of assistance available to help commuters navigate it.
“The purpose of this is to relieve some of the transfers we are seeing in Jamaica, provide more service opportunities in Grand Islip and Ronkonkoma, spread out some of the customer loads, and as a response to some of our customer requests we have received over the week and a half,” Rinaldi said of the newest alterations.
The rerouting will take effect this Monday.
