Kaminsky Co-Sponsors Bill to Refund LIRR Commuters

Senator Todd Kaminsky co-sponsored legislation which would authorize the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (“MTA”) and the Long Island Rail Road to discontinue payments to Amtrak. The bipartisan effort would further utilize those payments to purchase free tickets in order to compensate Long Island commuters inconvenienced by unprecedented delays due to poor track maintenance and mismanagement of Penn Station.

“Scores of angry commuters gathered with me at the Rockville Centre Station in the rain last week at our Rally for a Sane Commute,” said Senator Todd Kaminsky. “Together, we protested the conditions that LIRR riders experience daily as a result of Amtrak’s mismanagement -- we will no longer be treated as second-class citizens. The residents I represent pay a lot of money to commute and are not getting the services they pay for. I’m proud to stand with my colleague Sen. Phillips to provide the justice and consideration that they have earned.”

The legislation spans a period of approximately eight months from March 24, 2017 through the end of the year. The payments would resume only after Penn Station is returned to ninety-five percent on-time performance for trains arriving and departing at Penn Station for a period of no less than one month. Any and all payments withheld would be refunded to impacted commuters in the form of free rail tickets.  

Senator Todd Kaminsky has led the fight for improving the LIRR service. His letter to legislative leadership led to Assembly hearings during which Amtrak and MTA officials have testified. He has spoken up against the increase in LIRR fares while performance has declined, and challenged the MTA Director in Senate hearings on the poor state of several stations in his district. You can view his questioning of the MTA Director here, and the letter is above.