Long Island Rail Road
Commuter rail system on Long Island
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| 2025 | Long Island Rail Road begins purchasing 44 Siemens SC-42DM Charger locomotives as part of a fleet renewal and modernization project. |
| 2024 | End of the 2020–2024 MTA Capital Program period, during which electrification of the Central Branch was proposed but not completed. |
| November 2024 | Last M9 cars entered revenue service. |
| July 2024 | One-year pilot program launched offering 10% discount on monthly tickets for LIRR trips entirely within New York City. |
| May 2024 | Last M9 cars were delivered to LIRR. |
| August 20 2023 | The Far Rockaway Ticket became available for purchase at the Far Rockaway station and through the MTA's TrainTime app with geolocation restrictions. |
| August 3 2023 | A Long Island Rail Road commuter train derailed east of Jamaica station, resulting in 13 injuries. |
| July 2023 | Peak CityTickets announced, priced at $7 each. |
| May 2023 | MTA announced the Far Rockaway Ticket, a new discounted ticket option for travelers on the Far Rockaway Branch between Far Rockaway and other New York City stations, designed to provide CityTicket-like discounts with fare evasion protections. |
| February 27 2023 | Full service to Grand Central began, completing the East Side Access project. |
| January 2023 | Governor Kathy Hochul confirmed the MTA's plans for peak CityTickets. |
| January 25 2023 | East Side Access project opened with limited shuttle service between Jamaica and Grand Central. |
| 2022 | Third-track project between Floral Park and Hicksville was completed in preparation for East Side Access opening. |
| 2022 | Former New York State Senator Jim Gaughran advocated for electrification of the Port Jefferson Branch between Huntington and Port Jefferson stations, and the Oyster Bay Branch between East Williston and Oyster Bay, to improve service connectivity and address train restrictions at Penn Station and Grand Central Madison. |
| December 2022 | Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) introduced a new combo ticket for journeys utilizing both Long Island Rail Road and Metro-North Railroad systems via Grand Central, with a pricing that is $8 more than an adult off-peak ticket from the origin station. |
| December 2022 | MTA announced plans to allow CityTickets on peak trains. |
| October 2022 | The westbound platform of the Elmont station was opened. |
| March 2022 | CityTicket expanded to include all off-peak trains throughout the week, with fares raised to $5. |
| March 1 2022 | Long Island Rail Road reinstated peak fares after charging off-peak fares throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, and introduced several new discounts and ticket options. |
| 2021 | Completion of Kawasaki M9 electric multiple unit production, with additional purchase options for M9A cars potentially to be exercised. |
| 2021 | Thomas Caputo, along with co-conspirators John Nugent and Joseph Balestra, were federally convicted for large-scale overtime fraud, with evidence showing Caputo was clocked in during vacations and while attending social events like a bowling league. |
| November 2021 | The eastbound platform of the new Elmont station officially opened, marking the first new LIRR station in nearly 50 years. |
| 2020 | The MTA extended the Atlantic Ticket pilot program up to the summer, with renewed calls for implementing a Freedom Ticket within New York City. |
| 2020 | MTA proposed electrifying the LIRR's Central Branch as part of the 2020–2024 Capital Program, with the aim of enhancing service options and capacity, but the project was ultimately put on hold. |
| February 2020 | The sixth platform opened at Jamaica station, which exclusively serves Atlantic Branch shuttle trains to Brooklyn, enhancing the station's transfer capabilities. |
| September 11 2019 | First M9 railcars entered revenue service for the Long Island Rail Road. |
| May 25 2019 | A commuter train sideswiped a non-revenue train near Speonk station, derailing due to a track circuit failure, with no injuries but significant service disruption. |
| February 26 2019 | Two separate LIRR trains hit a pickup truck at the School Street railroad crossing in Westbury, causing three fatalities and numerous injuries. |
| 2018 | Raymond Murphy was discovered at or near his home on 10 separate occasions while simultaneously claiming overtime pay. He was allowed to retire with a full public pension before facing any reprimand. |
| 2018 | LIRR track inspector Thomas Caputo was paid approximately $461,000, with $344,000 claimed as overtime. He fraudulently claimed to have worked 3,864 overtime hours, averaging over 10 overtime hours per day for the entire year. |
| September 2018 | Main Line double-tracking project between Farmingdale and Ronkonkoma was completed in September. |
| September 2018 | Third-track widening project between Floral Park and Hicksville stations began, which included eliminating grade crossings and rebuilding stations. |
| June 2018 | The Atlantic Ticket pilot program launched, offering $5 one-way tickets to or from Atlantic Terminal. |
| May 2018 | The MTA Board voted to approve a six-month pilot for the Atlantic Ticket, a similar concept allowing LIRR riders in southeast Queens to purchase discounted one-way tickets. |
| 2017 | The Metropolitan Transportation Authority announced plans to phase out the MetroCard fare payment system and replace it with OMNY, a new contactless fare payment system for New York City-area transit systems, including the Long Island Rail Road. |
| 2017 | LIRR foreman Raymond Murphy earned $405,021, with $295,490 coming from overtime pay, despite being discovered at or near his home on 10 separate occasions while claiming overtime. |
| May 2017 | The Long Island Rail Road discontinued its annual service of the Ringling Brothers Barnum and Bailey Circus train between Long Island City and Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum following the circus's closure. |
| January 2017 | Thomas Prendergast, the former head of the MTA, announced at the board meeting that a field study would explore the Freedom Ticket plan to determine fares and service impact. |
| January 4 2017 | A Long Island Rail Road commuter train derailed at Atlantic Terminal in Brooklyn, injuring at least 103 people. |
| 2016 | Kawasaki M9 electric multiple units begin production, with build years from 2016-2021, resulting in 202 in-service units. |
| 2016 | LIRR saw a significant ridership increase to 89.3 million passengers, the highest since 1949, attributed to increased millennial usage and reverse-peak travel. |
| 2016 | LIRR increased ridership to 89.3 million passengers, marking its highest ridership since 1949. |
| October 8 2016 | A commuter train side-swiped a maintenance train east of New Hyde Park station, injuring 33 passengers, with four seriously hurt. |
| 2015 | NYCTRC wrote a proof of concept report for the Freedom Ticket, highlighting extensive commute times and fare disparities for express bus riders. |
| 2014 | MTA forecast indicated a need for 416 M9 railcars, including 180 to replace outdated M3 railcars and 236 additional cars for expected increased passengers from the East Side Access project. |
| December 1 2013 | A train derailment on the Metro-North Railroad prompts railroads with similar cab signal systems, including LIRR, to modify their systems to enforce speed limit changes, resulting in lower average speeds across the network. |
| September 2013 | MTA announced procurement of new M9 railcars from Kawasaki for the Long Island Rail Road. |
| August 6 2013 | A doctor and two consultants were found guilty and sentenced to prison for their involvement in the LIRR disability fraud scheme. |
| May 24 2013 | Modern Cannonball train inaugurated, running Friday-only from Penn Station to Montauk with two all-reserved parlor cars and full bar service, operating May through October. |
| 2012 | LIRR initiated a second track addition project along the Main Line between Farmingdale and Ronkonkoma stations to increase track capacity. |
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