Five Additional “Leaf Peeper” Trains Begin This Weekend
Half-Hourly Weekend Service Being Restored on Hudson Line Effective Oct. 16
Metro-North Railroad today announced the return of additional train service on the Hudson Line for customers to enjoy fall foliage and outdoor activities in the Hudson Valley. Beginning this Saturday, Oct. 8, five extra “Leaf Peeper” trains will operate on Saturdays and four extra trains on Sundays to take New York City metro area riders to the incomparably scenic Hudson River Valley.
Along with the extra “Leaf Peeper” trains, midday and afternoon half-hourly service will be restored on the Hudson Line beginning on Sunday, Oct. 16, with six trains added on Saturdays and four trains added on Sundays. The enhanced service to the Hudson Line will also include gameday service for the New York Yankees playoff games as necessary. The first playoff game at Yankee Stadium is scheduled for Oct. 11, with time and opponent to be determined.
“Fall is the best season to experience all that Metro-North has to offer. There are all types of activities to do, from taking in the beautiful fall foliage in the Hudson Valley to playoff baseball in the Bronx, and Metro-North is here to get you where you need to go when you want to get there,” said Metro-North Railroad President and LIRR Interim President Catherine Rinaldi. “Customers can still use the fare discounts rolled out earlier this year to travel with family and friends and use the new TrainTime app to plan their trip ahead of time.”
In addition to the Hudson Line service enhancements, Metro-North's schedule update will include additional getaway trains on holidays including Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s Day. Customers planning their trips can use the TrainTime app and still take advantage of fare discounts that were rolled out earlier this year.
TrainTime App
In August, the MTA launched a totally revamped TrainTime app as the new one-stop app for commuter rail customers in the region, showing all train schedules for 30 days in the future. The app replaced MTA eTix app and added the functionality of previously separate TrainTime apps for Metro-North Railroad and Long Island Rail Road, merging ticket purchasing, trip planning, real-time train location data.
Since its launch, TrainTime has been downloaded at a rate of 6,000 per day, with about 200,000 daily active users on a normal weekday. The app has 4.9 stars in the App Store with 27,000 reviews.
Fare Discounts
Fare discount packages rolled out earlier this year to encourage ridership remain available for commuter railroad customers. The MTA continues to encourage riders to take advantage of these discounts. These offerings include a 10 percent discount for monthly passes, and a new 20-trip ticket tailored for customers’ hybrid work schedules. The new 20-trip ticket saves riders 20 percent on regular peak one-way fares and is valid for 60 days.
Commuter rail riders who live in Manhattan or the Bronx and are looking to get to Yankee Stadium for playoff baseball can use the newly expanded City Ticket, which offers a reduced, flat fare of $5.00 each way for rail travel within New York City on all off-peak trains.