Saturday, April 26, 2025
The Long Island Rail Road is making changes to its Oyster Bay Branch schedule, adding two new trains and adjusting the departure time of an existing one in an effort to close service gaps and improve commuter convenience. The new schedule went into effect on Monday, and comes in addition to broader timetable updates that began in 2023.
According to a release from the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, the changes are intended to improve night service and reduce long gaps between trains.
For eastbound travelers, a 10:58 p.m. train from Penn Station to Oyster Bay will now depart 16 minutes earlier, at 10:42, and arrive at Oyster Bay at 12:09 a.m. Another train will be added at 11:17 p.m., arriving in Oyster Bay at 12:44 a.m.
Responding to a Herald post on Facebook, Glen Cove resident Melissa Marzulli voiced her frustration over the lack of late-night and early-morning service, pointing out a significant gap that could leave riders stranded.
“Nothing after midnight,” Marzulli wrote. “A person going out to the city or traveling would have to cut their night short because the last train to Oyster Bay leaves at 1:15 a.m. at Jamaica and doesn’t run until 8 a.m. in the morning. What if someone has to work at 6 a.m.(?) The train schedule is so confusing on the weekends. They need to add more hours after midnight and early mornings.”
Glen Head resident Joan Barrett Colby pointed out midday service gaps, which she said make train travel inconvenient for those with afternoon plans.
“They also need to add a midday train,” Colby wrote in a comment. “The 2-plus hour gap in the afternoon between the 12:38 p.m. and 2:45 p.m. train from Penn is unreasonable.”
For sports fans, however, the schedule update is a welcome improvement. Bayville resident Jeanne Sharkey Zaino posted that she was thrilled about the changes.
“Having gone to Knicks games a lot, these are great changes,” Zaino wrote. “Rather not go to Syosset or Hicksville.”
Others, like Glen Cove Councilwoman Danielle Fugazy Scagliola, had mixed feelings about the news. Fugazy Scagliola and Assemblyman Charles Lavine have been working closely with MTA officials since 2023. The pair sent a joint letter expressing their concerns about the impact of the new East Side Access/Grand Central Madison projects on North Shore riders. The changes did away with timed connections — meaning trains no longer waited for other trains at Jamaica or other junctions. Fugazy Scagliola and Lavine’s meetings with the MTA resulted in the addition of a morning-rush-hour express train to Penn Station.
Fugazy Scagliola acknowledged the improvements, but added that she didn’t believe they went far enough for peak-hour commuters.
“I’m very happy that it’s a positive change,” she said. “It does solve the problem of the gap that was there. But it's just not enough. We need better commuting options in the peak hours. It’s good because it’s a step in the right direction, but it’s like a baby step.”
The LIRR conducted a customer satisfaction survey over two weeks last October, and riders on the Oyster Bay branch reported the lowest satisfaction rate of any LIRR branch, 68 percent.
LIRR president: ‘A step toward reliability and convenience’
In a statement, the LIRR said that the additional service would be a “boon” to Oyster Bay customers coming home from Broadway shows, concerts or sports event in Manhattan.
LIRR President Rob Free defended the updates, emphasizing their role in improving area residents’ travel opportunities.
“The best way to create an amazing customer experience is to provide reliable, convenient, and frequent service to our customers,” Free said in a news release. “These new trains create more travel opportunities for people to experience all that Long Island and NYC have to offer in the evening.”
