Long Island Rail Road Strike! - News & Photo Features

Great Neck, Long Island. The Long Island Railroad Strike has stranded some 300,000 riders a day, cost millions of dollars of economic activity daily. The Teamsters’ demands would cause fares to increase 8%, and trigger wage and cost increases across the state’s workforce at a time when commuters can scarcely afford it © Karen Rubin/news-photos-features.com

By Karen Rubin, editor@news-photos-features.com, news-photos-features.com

For the first time in 30 years, the Long Island Rail Road, the biggest commuter rail system in the nation, is on strike, causing havoc across the region, as some 300,000 daily riders have to find alternate ways to get to work.

At a time when the air quality is already bad, the increased traffic and emissions will make it worse.

People who normally have to drive for work, to get to doctor, or some emergency are stuck in traffic, at a time when gas prices are reaching new heights, compounding family financial woes.

You look at the vacant cafes and shops around the train station that are normally bustling with people.

The timing is interesting, aimed at hurting Governor Kathy Hochul who is being challenged by Republican Bruce Blakeman, the Nassau County Executive.

*The Long Island Rail Road strike is exacerbating traffic congestion on the Long Island Expressway, even with the HOV lane jammed © Karen Rubin/news-photos-features.com*

The NICE buses which are under Blakeman’s control, take only 13,000 people from Long Island train stations, depositing them at subway stations in Queens.

A commute that normally takes 40 minutes can take 2 hours.

The timing of the strike – the first in 30 years – is interesting, especially since the MTA put very favorable terms on the table, and the LIRR workers are already the highest paid in the nation.

I would bet Trump is behind the Long Island Railroad strike in order to boost Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman, who is the Republican challenging Governor Kathy Hochul and thinks the strike makes Governor Hochul look bad and the pain it will cause the 300,000 daily LIRR riders will result in lots of angry votes against her, because of course you blame the Democrat – except it actually makes Blakeman look impotent.

It also makes it clear that like his idol, Donald Trump, Blakeman is willing to inflict misery and suffering on his constituents in order to benefit himself. The Teamsters, who have supported trump for the unfathomable notion that trump is for workers and for unions (when he has sold workers and unions under the bus at every turn) and that waving the trump flag makes them more patriotic and better Americans than others (radical liberal lunatics who want to be able to afford food, clothing and shelter) are doing this to bolster Blakeman.

Here’s how you know that Blakeman is enjoying seeing Hochul and Long Islanders squirm: he could offer to help organize NICE buses to relieve some of the stress, but instead, uses the opportunity to try to get Hochul to cancel congestion pricing tolls (which he sued to overturn), to be told by Hochul that it is not possible under the federal contract. Instead, the pro-Blakeman NICE unions are urging bus drivers to support the LIRR strikers and not change their schedules to help. (Where were the unions defending the federal workers as they were fired by DOGE?)

*The Long Island Rail Road strike is exacerbating traffic congestion when drivers are already slammed by high gas prices © Karen Rubin/news-photos-features.com*

But Governor Hochul, while showing respect for unions and workers, has noted that Long Island Railroad workers are already the highest paid in the country, and if the MTA accedes to their fairly outrageous demands, it not only will force a further increase in fares for already hard-pressed Long Islanders, but will trigger similar, unsustainable increases throughout the workforce.

Lining up for the NICE bus from Great Neck train station to Flushing subway: NICE buses can only take 13,000 passengers, versus the 300,000 who ride the Long Island Railroad © Karen Rubin/news-photos-features.com

“The LIRR is more stable now than it has been for generations,” Governor Kathy Hochul stated. “The decision by some unions to strike over demands that would threaten that progress is reckless. These unions represent the highest paid workers of any railroad in the nation, yet they are demanding contracts that could raise fares as much as 8%, pit workers against one another, and risk tax hikes for Long Islanders. This is unacceptable. My priority is protecting affordability for riders and ensuring fairness across the workforce.

“The disruption that Long Islanders face starting tonight is the direct result of reckless actions by the Trump Administration to cut mediation short and push these negotiations toward a strike. For weeks, the MTA has attempted to negotiate in good faith and put multiple fair offers on the table that included meaningful wage increases, but you cannot make a deal if one side refuses to engage in good faith.

“Commuters are dealing with unnecessary dysfunction and thousands of union LIRR workers are being forced to go without a paycheck because of decisions made by a small group of union leaders. I stand with LIRR riders and will fight to preserve the long term stability of the MTA. I believe a deal can be done and I urge both the MTA and these unions to return to the table and bargain non-stop until a deal is reached.”

See: Governor Hochul Manages, Mitigates Impacts of LIRR Strike, Calls for Settlement

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