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TrainTalk ~ A Publication for MTA Long Island Rail Road Customers: May, 2009

Go Green to the Greens
The U.S. Open Championship at Bethpage BlackThe U.S. Open Championship at Bethpage Black will be held from Monday, June 15 through Sunday, June 21 ... and the LIRR will be providing customers with extra service to our Farmingdale Station. Once there, the United States Golf Association (USGA), in cooperation with MTA LI Bus, will meet patrons and shuttle them to Bethpage State Park to see the best golfers in the world take on one of the best golf courses in the world ... The Black!
WE STRONGLY ENCOURAGE THE PURCHASE OF ROUND-TRIP TICKETS PRIOR TO BOARDING YOUR TRAIN TO THE OPEN.

Travel Tips

After disembarking from LIRR trains at Farmingdale, all customers heading for the U.S. Open will be required to pass through a security checkpoint operated by the USGA prior to boarding the buses. Those with items that are prohibited from the Open, including cellphones, will be required to wait on an additional line in order to leave those items at a security station.  Security inspections, similar to those used at airports, will be conducted in the spectator parking facilities and at the Farmingdale train station.
Being in the travel business, and knowing the terrain at Bethpage Black, we’ll add one more travel tip ... wear good, comfortable shoes.


Fare Increases Effective June 17
New York's elected officials have approved a new budget for the MTA and its agencies. The budget raises LIRR fares by approximately 10%, effective June 17. Monthly ticket increases will take effect in July.  Full details are available at our website.


$3000 In Cash … Lost, Found and Returned!
At a time when it’s tough to find a man you can trust with your money, Timothy Myles stepped forward! Recently, Mr. Myles, an LIRR bartender at Penn Station's platform level, found $3,000 in cash on the floor of a train.  He gathered the pile of $100 and $20 bills, and brought it to our Lost&Found office in Penn Station. About an hour later the worried owner showed up and provided details proving that the money was his. Imagine his relief when he was told that his funds had been turned in and were awaiting him.  Nice work, Mr. Myles.


GreenStreet LI
The LIRR is doing its part to support Newsday's GreenStreet LI campaign. By serving nearly 300,000 customers each weekday, we are helping them save 100 million gallons of gas (and more than $250 million … which is a lot of 'green!'). The ‘greener’ measure of our efforts however, would be the thousands of automobiles our trains help keep off of the road, and the tons of pollutants we help keep out of the air. The LIRR ... it's one of the greenest transportation choices you can make … it's 1 Simple Thing.  For details visit www.greenstreetli.com.


New Schedule Begins May 18
All customers should be certain to review the new schedules that will begin on Monday, May 18, as they include changes to peak, midday and weekend service. One Hempstead Branch AM Peak train, and one Babylon Branch PM Peak train will be eliminated ... as will two eastbound and one westbound late-evening Montauk Branch trains. Track work programs will require additional changes to midday and weekend service. All timetables are available on our website and at terminals and stations around the system.


Memorial Day
The day set aside to commemorate the men and women who died in the service of our country, falls on Monday, May 25 this year.  Extra Memorial Day Weekend getaway trains will run on Friday, May 22. Check your schedules for the details.


Email Alerts
By going to this address, www.mymtaalerts.com, you can register to receive alerts on your cellphone or pda about any combination of subway lines, bus routes, rail lines, bridges or tunnels. You can choose to receive them 24/7, or only during a particular time of day or week.

Hamptons Service
Service to the Hamptons is about to get underway ... highlighted by our world-famous getaway, The Cannonball. Pick up one of our Montauk Branch timetables at the LIRR’s terminals, or go to Hamptons Service page.


LIRRCC President's Forum
Do you have a question, concern or suggestion for Long Island Rail Road management? If so, from 5 PM to 7 PM  on Wednesday, May 20, you'll have the opportunity to deliver it directly to the top. On that day the Long Island Rail Road Commuters' Council will hold its annual President's Forum, and this year it will be conducted in the street-level lobby of the AirTrain JFK building next to Jamaica Station. For more information, contact the LIRR Commuters’ Council at (212) 878-7087 or visit their website.


Simply the Best
April was better than all the rest, with an On Time Performance of 96.65%. More than just the highest-ever month-of-April in 30 years of modern record keeping … it was the best month of all months in those three decades of months!

BRANCH AM
Peak 		PM
Peak 		Off-
Peak 		Total
April
2009		 Total
April
2008
Babylon 98.6 93.0 96.0 96.0 97.2
Far Rockaway 97.9 98.0 98.7 98.5 97.8
Hicksville/Huntington 98.2 96.4 96.3 96.6 95.2
Hempstead 98.4 99.5 98.1 98.3 96.4
Long Beach 97.7 95.9 97.5 97.3 96.9
Montauk 97.2 93.5 94.0 94.4 96.4
Oyster Bay 98.1 93.9 97.3 96.9 94.0
Port Jefferson 97.2 94.2 94.8 95.1 94.1
Port Washington 98.7 97.1 96.5 96.9 95.5
Greenport/Ronkonkoma 97.7 97.6 94.8 95.8 93.6
West Hempstead 99.1 98.5 98.5 98.6 97.4
TOTAL 98.2 95.9 96.5 96.7 96.0