NEW YORK — The Long Island Rail Road will rescind the schedule changes it introduced on Monday, restoring the previous schedule on March 29.
“We heard our customers’ concerns about our new schedule loud and clear,” LIRR President Phil Eng said in a statement issued Tuesday. “As a result, we will restore our previous timetable on March 29. In the meantime, we will continue to strategically add additional trains and lengthen trains to meet evolving ridership levels.”
Monday’s schedule changes reduced the total number of trains to 75% of previous levels, Eng said Monday — at a time when ridership is about 25% of pre-pandemic levels — but Newsday reports that some branch lines only had one train per hour even in peak periods, leading to crowding on trains during the Monday morning rush hour. The Long Island adjusted schedules both Monday evening and Tuesday morning — adding eight trains on Tuesday — but crowding issues continued, with at least one train with cars at 50% to 85% of capacity. Riders complained about safety issues from the inability to maintain social distancing, and Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo and other officials were highly critical.
“We don’t want overcrowded trains, especially during this period of COVID,” Cuomo said, according to Newsday. “I understand the financial constraints. I understand there’s reduces ridership. But it’s smarter to have fewer people on a train during this period, even if it’s not cost effective.”
Commuter rail is emerging from the dead. It’s good that America is startng to get back to normal and that Americans are realizing the lockdowns and antisocial distancing were absolutely useless. A couple of days ago at my usual railfan hangout of LaGrange and Western Springs, Illinois, I saw seven-car dinkies on the Burlington — I assume though only half loaded with the alternate seats blanked out.
Lockdowns and Physical distancing were necessary, and this country should have done more of them. 500 000 Americans have died from this, quit being so antagonizing on every comment section, it’s embarrassing.