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As LIRR strike looms, Hochul warns Long Islanders they may have to stay home
By
Ramsey Khalifeh
Published May 13, 2026
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Courtesy New York State Executive Chamber
By
Ramsey Khalifeh
Published May 13, 2026
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Gov. Kathy Hochul on Wednesday said Long Island Rail Road commuters should plan to work from home if the train service shuts down for a strike.
Five unions representing a majority of the LIRR’s workforce could walk off the job as soon as Saturday, as they remain in a stalemate with the MTA over pay raises and work rules.
MTA officials last month laid out plans to run shuttle buses to help move Long Island commuters if the rail workers go on strike.
Hochul said during a news conference at Jones Beach that the buses can carry “essential workers,” but pointed out they wouldn’t come close to handling the 270,000 riders the LIRR carries each weekday.
“I want to be clear that these buses will not be able to replace full Long Island Rail Road service,” she said. “That’s why the MTA has encouraged employers and employees on Long Island to plan for work-from-home early next week if a strike occurs.”
The MTA’s plan would run shuttle buses from the Bay Shore, Hicksville and Mineola LIRR stations to the Howard Beach-JFK subway station on the A line. Long Islanders at the Huntington and Ronkonkoma LIRR stations could take buses to the Jamaica-179th Street subway stop on the F line.
"I want to make sure that commuters are not inconvenienced, and if they have that option [to work from home], they may have to exercise it,” Hochul said. “This is about putting their needs first.”
If a strike were to continue into Monday, it could bring gridlock to much of Long Island.
The LIRR is the country's busiest commuter railroad. New York state officials have for decades pointed out how essential it is for Nassau and Suffolk counties' nearly 3 million residents.
A 1965 report on the planned purchase of the LIRR by New York under then-Gov. Nelson Rockefeller noted the railroad carries as many as 50,000 people during a single hour each morning.
“To duplicate this movement by automobile on limited access highways would require 26 lanes going in one direction,” the report said. “This would mean the building of five more Long Island Expressways and several more Queens-Midtown Tunnels.”
The last time the LIRR shut down for a labor strike was in 1994. It lasted for two days.
Jamie Horowitz, a spokesperson for the LIRR unions threatening to go on strike, said the two sides held another bargaining session Wednesday morning and each side was reviewing the other’s proposals.
“The coalition of five LIRR unions has said that its 3,500 members who make up a majority of the railroad’s unionized workforce need an agreement that addresses rising inflation and the high cost of living on Long Island,” Kevin Sexton, vice president of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen, said in a statement.
MTA officials previously said the transit agency would have to increase LIRR fares by 8% next year, cut jobs and reduce service to meet all the union’s demands.
“I’m not willing to ask Long Islanders to pay unnecessary fare hikes or higher taxes,” Hochul said Wednesday.
Clayton Guse contributed reporting.
Tagged
Kathy Hochul
Politics
long island
new york city
transportation
Ramsey Khalifeh
Ramsey Khalifeh is a transportation reporter on the NYC Accountability desk covering the largest transit system in the country. He was previously a general assignment reporter at Gothamist and worked on the Boston Globe's metro and copy desk. Got a tip? Email [email protected]
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