NEW YORK (AP) 鈥� Trains are rolling again on the Long Island Rail Road after a to end a strike that had shut down the busiest commuter rail system in the U.S.
The first trains departed from New York City鈥檚 two main rail hubs, Penn Station and Grand Central Terminal, shortly after noon Tuesday, with the system ramping up to full service in time for the evening rush home from work.
鈥淭hank God this is over,鈥� said Vivian Santos of Great River, Long Island, who said it had taken her an extra 40 minutes to commute while the trains weren’t running.
by five labor unions representing about half the LIRR鈥檚 workforce had halted service for roughly 250,000 commuters who use the system that connects New York City to its eastern suburbs every weekday. It began Saturday and a deal was announced Monday evening.
鈥淚 thought it was going to be longer,鈥� said Santos from a train at Penn Station on Tuesday afternoon. 鈥淏ut thank God they realized: we need them.鈥�
Labor union leaders, meanwhile, began briefing rank-and-file members about the contract terms, said Jamie Horwitz, a spokesperson for the five unions. Voting was expected to take place over the coming days according to each union鈥檚 contract ratification process.
Earlier in the day Tuesday, morning commuters still had to muddle through a tough rush hour, as trains weren鈥檛 ready for service in time for the trip into work. The LIRR urged riders to work from home, though shuttle buses were offered from a handful of locations on Long Island to subway stations in New York City.
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul and railroad officials have declined to disclose details of the new contract terms until they are approved by union members. But the Democrat, who is up for reelection, has stressed the deal won鈥檛 increase fares or taxes.
Robert Free, president of the LIRR, said Tuesday that the two sides simply 鈥渇ound another way鈥� to make the numbers work.
鈥淭here are things in there that make it more affordable, make it more palatable for the unions to agree upon, and make it easier for us to fit within our financial structure,鈥� he said shortly before the first trains departed.
Michele Forrester, who relies on the LIRR to get to her job at a grocery on Long Island, was among the riders with mixed feelings about the apparent resolution to the system鈥檚 first walkout since a two-day strike in 1994.
鈥淚 just feel like it should not have gotten to this point in the first place,鈥� she said Tuesday afternoon as she waited at the LIRR hub in the Jamaica neighborhood of Queens. 鈥淲ith how much they make, it feels like other people are struggling to get by, and they鈥檙e talking about getting more money.鈥�
But Nya Archie, a filmmaker from Queens headed into Manhattan, said the strike was an important reminder that working people are still vital to making New York possible.
鈥淚鈥檓 happy they were able to stop people and make them realize, yes, this is a functioning, running machine, but it鈥檚 run by the people above anything,鈥� she said. 鈥淎nd without the people, it鈥檚 not gonna move, it鈥檚 not gonna work and it鈥檚 gonna get uncomfortable. I really liked them making that heard.鈥�
The first impacts of the walkout were felt over the weekend, as baseball fans had to find other ways to get to Citi Field in Queens to see the New York Mets take on their crosstown rivals the New York Yankees.
Hochul noted that the deal would ensure basketball fans could travel to watch the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden, which is located directly above the LIRR鈥檚 Penn Station hub in Manhattan.
The unions 鈥� which represent locomotive engineers, machinists, signalmen and others 鈥� and the Metropolitan Transportation Authority had been , but talks had stalled over salaries and healthcare.
The unions have said raises were needed to help workers keep up with inflation and the rising cost of living in the New York City area. The MTA had said the union鈥檚 initial demands would lead to fare increases and set a difficult precedent for negotiations with other transit unions.
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Associated Press videojournalist David R. Martin contributed.
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