LIRR now cross-honors Metrocards to last stops in Queens during subway shutdown

A LIRR train travels through Queens. Photo by AEMoreira042281 via Wikimedia Commons

By David Brand

The Long Island Rail Road has begun cross-honoring Metrocards for overnight travel to the last stations in Queens, after the transit agency initially forced commuters to pay extra after passing Jamaica and Flushing Main Street.

Starting May 6, the MTA halted subway service between 1 a.m. and 5 a.m. to allow for deep cleaning and to move homeless New Yorkers out of the trains. Metrocard holders traveling during that time could take the LIRR at no additional cost, until they reached the Jamaica or Flushing hubs. 

“The problem was if you lived in Little Neck or Bayside or Auburndale, the only way for you to stay on the train was to pay $3.75 to continue, of if you didn’t have a ticket, to pay a $15 fine,” said Charlton D’Souza, the president of transit advocacy organization Passengers United.

D’Souza said he and his organization advocated for the cross-honoring extension, pointing out that the cut-off midway through Queens was a hassle for commuters, conductors and MTA police. The train cops were frequently called to issue summonses to riders who could not pay the extra fare to travel the final few stops, he said.

An MTA spokesperson pointed to the cross-honoring information included on the MTA website, which now lists Queens Village, Little Neck, Rosedale, the last stops in Queens before the train continues into Nassau County.

The service extension will provide some relief for Metrocard-holders who relied on cabs paid for by the state to get home during the overnight subway shutdown. The MTA is eliminating the cabs, though overnight subway service is still suspended, the Daily News reported Friday.