The Long Island Railroad that runs in and out of New York City 24/7 has an average
ridership of 253,800 citizens per weekday. Growing up and going to school on Long Island, my
commute to class was never longer than 20 minutes. While I always imagined myself receiving a
higher education in New York City, I envisioned a simple commute. I’d drive to the train station,
have a pleasant thirty minute ride where I can relax and study, and then a peaceful walk to
campus. Most people from my town commute to the city for work on a daily basis, so, I thought,
how bad can it be? It wasn’t until about a month ago that I realized this fantasy was far from
reality. I quickly learned how crowded train cars can be, how expensive trip tickets are, how
busy and dirty the city streets get, and how inconvenient the train times are. The costly,
overcrowded and unaccommodating trains that have chronic negative impacts on commuter’s
daily routines can be fixed with more cars at better times and more taxpayer money going
towards LIRR transportation.
In March of 2023, Manhattan’s East Side opened up Grand Central Station, an 11 million
dollar project that was said to accommodate commuters who work closer to the East Side. In
2017, the Feds warned that the LIRR needed twenty more eight-car trains in order to efficiently
run the Grand Central Station. Six years later, we are still awaiting those vital twenty trains. The

LIRR’s solution thus far has been to take trains that are supposed to be transiting to Penn Station
and move them to Grand Central, consequently lengthening and disturbing commutes. While less
cars are coming into Penn, 71 percent of LIRR users are traveling to and from this station,
leading to overcrowding on trains. Some riders find themselves needing to stand in bathrooms.
Recently, I had a situation where the train I typically take was canceled, so I waited only a couple
minutes until the next Port Washington train. Upon entering the car, dozens of New Yorkers were
standing up and I was unable to move an inch. In order to close the doors, conductors had to
push and shove people in very tightly. One train being canceled, which happens rather often, led
to hazardous overcrowding on trains, delayed departures, and left hundreds of riders cramped up
together, unable to let out a breath. If we had just a few more train cars up and running, major
issues like this could be avoided.
When the LIRR took trains to Grand Central, not only did it lead to dangerously
overpopulated trains, but also intractable train times, adding hours to peoples commutes. CBS
New York headed out to interview frustrated passengers, and documented the many negative
statements. According to CBS’s article, one East Meadow commuter, Mike Merritt, explained,
“It added about 40 minutes to my commute going to Brooklyn every day…They say that every
Atlantic Terminal train is on 11 and 12, but it’s not always the case. One day it was on Track 4.
Then they tell you the train’s pulling up, it’s pulling off. Nothing’s consistent” (Dias, Line 6-18).
One can only imagine the magnitude of people running around the platforms, missing trains due
to miscommunication, and waiting for extended periods of time for connecting trains. Another
commuter from Massapequa interviewed for a New York Times article put it perfectly when she
said, “It’s obvious to me: they need more trains” (Hicks, Sheehan, Golding, Line 34). Most train
times are simply unreasonable, for example, there are 4 peak trains that go back to my town

between 5 and 6pm, however, none of those 4 train times are between 5:10 and 5:50 pm. Like the
graphic designer from Massapequa said, having more trains would eliminate long transfer stops
and allow for more trains at convenient times.
This summer, the frustrating Metropolitan Transportation Authority unanimously agreed to raise the
price of train tickets, making the already expensive fare even more costly. A peak train from
Great Neck to Manhattan is now 13 dollars each way, making the daily commute for friends and
family from my area right under 30 dollars a day. For most middle or working-class citizens, who
happen to be the ones using the LIRR, this is an unattainable price. A friend of mine, Deborah
Etessami, joked that she is spending more money on transportation than on college tuition.
Another friend of mine, who is also a college freshman, told me that she didn’t enroll in her
top-choice university, but rather chose to go to school on Long Island, because of unreliable
trains and pricey tickets.
Many would argue that the high fares are the consequence of working in one of the
largest metropolitan areas on the planet, and commuters are paying a rather fair price to access
the bustling city quickly and blissfully. While working in New York City does open doors to
great opportunities, this privilege is diminished when the cost of getting in and out of the city is
unaffordable for many Great Neckers and other Long Islanders. Governor Kathy Hochul has a
plan to increase payroll taxes on businesses that benefit from the services of the Metropolitan
Transportation Authority. Michelle Kaske writes in her Bloomberg article, “NY’s Hochul Wants
Payroll Tax to Boost NYC Subways, Transit” that this tax increase would generate an additional
$1.3 billion dollars of new revenue for the MTA annually. Kaske continues, “Increasing the levy
to 0.5% from 0.34% would give the transit agency an additional $800 million annually,
according to Hochul spokesperson” (Kaske, lines 26-28). This extra money would be

life-changing for most daily commuters. Not only would it allow the LIRR to charge daily
commuters a more rational daily rate, but it would also help fund the necessary twenty new trains
that the Feds urged the LIRR to create in 2017.
Long Island commuters who constantly struggle with expensive train tickets, jam-packed
cars, and frustrating train times know the importance and urgency of ordering more trains,
running them at better times, and increasing taxes for those who benefit from the MTA system.
These quotidian, systematic issues have impacts that go beyond just being able to get into the
city effortlessly. Great Neck residents find themselves frequently getting into work hours late due
to LIRR delays and cancellations. Additionally, crowded trains can lead to unsanitary and
dangerous living conditions. The money Great Neck commuters need to spend to get in and out
of the city was reason enough for a friend of mine not to study at her top-choice university. All
Long Islanders alike would love to see changes to the MTA in the near future, making working
and going into a city a much more pleasant experience.