MTA, Port Authority to Conduct In-Person Outreach on Upcoming Jamaica LIRR Station Redesign Project

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), in partnership with the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, today announced it has begun an in-person outreach program at the Jamaica Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) station to directly engage with customers on the upcoming station redesign project. MTA staff will host a table at the station with officials from the Port Authority and local elected officials to provide members of the public with the opportunity to ask questions about the project and have their voices heard by project team members.

"Jamaica Station is a key access point to JFK Airport for customers coming from New York City and from Long Island, as well as Westchester and Connecticut thanks to the new connection at Grand Central Madison," said Long Island Rail Road President Rob Free. "A newly redesigned Jamaica will improve the customer experience and meet the increasing service demands of the millions of customers who connect there. Customer feedback means we'll know exactly what those millions of riders want to see in their new station."

"Jamaica Station is a critical transportation hub for the entire region, connecting millions of riders to their destinations every year," said MTA Construction & Development President Jamie Torres-Springer. "As we plan for the future of the station, rider feedback will ensure the improvements we deliver reflect the needs and priorities of the people who use this station every day."

"A project that will bring long overdue upgrades to Jamaica Station is about improving the experiences of the riders who use it, and we can't do that effectively without feedback from LIRR commuters, straphangers, and the thousands of airline passengers and employees who use the station to connect to AirTrain JFK every day," said Port Authority Executive Director Kathryn Garcia. "With Governor Hochul's support, we are transforming JFK into a world-class global gateway that will be served by an equally world-class AirTrain and Jamaica Station."

"Jamaica Station is more than a transit hub, it's a daily touchpoint for families throughout Queens," said New York State Senator Leroy Comrie. "As we look ahead to redesigning this space, it's important that the voices of the people who use it every day are central to the conversation. This outreach aims to meet riders where they are, listen to their experiences and ensure the future of Jamaica Station reflects the needs of our community. This presents a real opportunity to create a safer, more accessible, and more seamless connection between York College and downtown Jamaica with the LIRR, subway, AirTrain and bus services so we can deliver upgraded stations that are safe, clean, and secure."

This in-person tabling coincides with the previously announced customer survey, which will remain live until Friday, May 8.

Jamaica Station is integral to the commutes of millions of New Yorkers, enabling workers and students in Queens to get to school and jobs, allowing travelers to get to and from Long Island, ensuring travelers from around the world can efficiently and affordably get to JFK Airport, and connecting New Yorkers to world-class sporting and entertainment events. More than 1,000 subways and LIRR trains pass through Jamaica Station every weekday with 200,000 passengers relying on them for transit, making it the fourth busiest commuter rail station in North America - surpassed only by Grand Central, Penn Station and Toronto's Union Station. Yet Jamaica Station has been left far behind in terms of customer experience and investment; it was last upgraded 23 years ago, when the AirTrain JFK began operation in 2003.

In recent years, Jamaica Station has seen a significant increase in LIRR service following the opening of Grand Central Madison and completion of the Main Line's new third track. Today, 790 trains stop at Jamaica, an increase of 54% over the 481 that stopped there before Grand Central Madison opened. The MTA has also made major improvements to service quality at Jamaica by using more sophisticated monitoring of on-time performance to manage train connections at the station. The benefits for customers who rely on transfers to complete their journeys has fueled a 17-point improvement in customer satisfaction with transfers at Jamaica.

To modernize Jamaica Station into the world-class station experience commuters deserve it to be, Governor Kathy Hochul is taking the next step to design a reimagined Jamaica Station. The reimagined Jamaica Station will help create better traffic flow, reduce crowding, and build out a world class station complex providing seamless connection between the LIRR Main Line, NYC Transit, and AirTrain JFK for the millions of commuters and airline passengers who depend on it.