Labor leaders are set to meet again with officials from the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) on Thursday to continue contract negotiations.
If they can’t agree on the amount and pace of wage increases, a strike will begin at 12:01 AM on Saturday, May 16, which would shut down all service on every branch.
Negotiations
Almost 300,000 people ride the Long Island Railroad daily, making it the busiest in the nation. Five labor unions representing 3,500 workers — about half the workforce — want a 14.5% wage increase over 4 years. The MTA offer is 9.5% over three years, plus a lump sum payment.
“I believe firmly that the deal is present,” said Gary Dellaverson, chief negotiator for the MTA, at a news conference Wednesday afternoon. “It's available. It's doable. And we should reach it tomorrow.”
Alternatives
If Dellaverson is wrong, LIRR commuters have few options. The MTA has been updating its website with the latest on contingency plans. So far, there are three basic alternatives for commuters who normally rely on the LIRR.
Option 1: Work from home if possible.
Option 2: Vehicle traffic congestion will likely be worse than usual, but commuters can drive or carpool, and NICE buses can take riders from Nassau County to the 7 or F trains in Queens.
Option 3: Take a shuttle bus from one of six Long Island locations to a subway station in Queens.
Buses will take riders from the LIRR stations in Bay Shore, Lakeview/Hempstead Lake State Park, Hicksville, and Mineola to Howard Beach/JFK Airport, where they can continue west on the A train.
Buses from the Huntington and Ronkonkoma LIRR stations will take riders to Jamaica, where they can transfer to the F train.
Shuttle bus service would start Monday, operating every 10 minutes from 4:30 AM to 9:00 AM heading west, and from 3:00 PM to 7:00 PM heading east.
