Shuttle buses linking to Queens subway stops will run out of just three Long Island Rail Road stations if railroad workers go on strike next Thursday morning, and only during rush hours, MTA officials said yesterday. Alfonso A. Castillo reports in NEWSDAY that a week removed from a potential shutdown of the nation’s largest commuter rail system, Metropolitan Transportation Authority officials offered new details of their plan for dealing with nearly 300,000 displaced riders — the majority of whom, they hope, can work from home. "We couldn’t possibly replace the full service that the LIRR runs everyday," Shanifah Rieara, chief customer officer for the MTA said at a Penn Station news conference Thursday afternoon. "But we are trying our best to accommodate those essential workers in an effort not to leave anyone stranded."

In the event of a strike, which could commence by 12:01 a.m. Thursday, the LIRR would operate buses every 10 minutes during the weekday rush hours between three railroad stations — Bellmore to Howard Beach, JFK Airport A train station, and Hicksville and Ronkonkoma stations to the 7 train station at Mets-Willets Point. MTA officials also encouraged commuters to consider Nassau Inter-County Express (NICE) Bus routes linking to Flushing and Jamaica, where they can connect to subway lines.

The threat of the first LIRR work stoppage since 1994 follows an impasse in contract negotiations between the MTA and five labor organizations representing just under half all LIRR union workers. The MTA wants the unions to accept the same three-year deal with 9.5% in raises already accepted by most LIRR workers. The unions say those raises don't keep up with inflation or with what other railroads throughout the United States are paying their workers.

In a statement yesterday, Kevin Sexton, vice president for the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen, said the unions’ demands are "exceedingly reasonable, essentially the status quo when it comes to the cost of living."

Federal mediators last month declared that a voluntary settlement was out of reach, opening the door for a legal strike next week unless the White House intervenes by forcing both sides back into mediation. So far, neither the unions, the MTA nor New York Gov. Kathy Hochul have requested such intervention from the Trump administration.

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Riverhead Town officials called for the return of national unity during a prayer service commemorating the 24th anniversary of the al-Qaeda Islamic terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, and the Americans who bravely responded. Alek Lewis reports on Riverheadlocal.com that Riverhead Town Clerk Jim Wooten led yesterday’s morning service with roughly 40 people gathered at World Trade Center Memorial Park in Calverton. Wooten reflected on how the attacks united the nation in grief. Nearly 3,000 people were killed…497 from Long Island…and more than 6,000 others were injured in the 9/11 attacks. “In the days that followed was shock, anger, disbelief, hysteria and the solidarity of the American people rarely seen in a lifetime,” Wooten said. “There was a common pride in mobilization of support groups and charity fundraising to do what we could to relieve the pain and the loss of our fellow Americans.” Riverhead Town Supervisor Tim Hubbard echoed Wooten’s theme of unity. “In the days following 9/11, our great country came...