Most Agencies Will Operate on a Weekend or Holiday Schedule for Christmas and New Year’s
MTA Adding Extra Subway and Commuter Rail Service on New Year’s Eve
LIRR Increasing Trains Before and After Billy Joel’s New Year’s Eve Concert at UBS Arena
Visit MTA.info, MTA app, or TrainTime app for Real-Time Updates
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) is the fastest and most reliable way to beat the rush of holiday traffic this season as millions of customers shop, see friends and family and make their way to their destinations.
Most MTA agencies will operate on weekend or holiday schedules for Christmas and New Year’s.
There will be extra service for those heading into New York City for New Year’s Eve festivities and for fans attending Billy Joel’s New Year’s Eve concert at UBS Arena in Elmont.
Details for each agency are below:
New York City Subway
Christmas Eve, Tuesday, Dec. 24
On Tuesday, Dec. 24, New York City subways will operate on a regular weekday schedule.
Christmas Day
On Wednesday, Dec. 25, New York City subways will operate on a Sunday schedule.
New Year’s Eve
On Tuesday, Dec. 31, New York City subways will operate on a regular weekday schedule, with increased service on the and 42 St in the evening into post-midnight hour. The train will be running express until 2:45 a.m.
New Year’s Day
On Wednesday, Jan. 1, New York City subways will operate on a Sunday schedule.
New York City Buses
Christmas Eve
On Tuesday, Dec. 24, bus routes in the Bronx, Brooklyn, and Manhattan and some bus routes in Queens are operating on a reduced weekday schedule, while other routes in Queens are operating a regular weekday schedule.
Buses on Staten Island will operate on a weekday schedule.
Christmas Day
On Wednesday, Dec. 25, buses in all five boroughs will run on a Sunday schedule.
New Year’s Eve
On Tuesday, Dec. 31, bus routes in the Bronx, Brooklyn, and Manhattan and some bus routes in Queens are operating on a reduced weekday schedule, while other routes in Queens are operating a regular weekday schedule.
Buses on Staten Island will operate on a weekday school closed schedule.
Bus routes in and around Midtown are subject to detours around road closures.
New Year’s Day
On Wednesday, Jan. 1, buses in all five boroughs will operate on a Sunday schedule.
Access-A-Ride
Paratransit will operate full 24/7 service throughout the holidays including on Christmas and New Year’s Day. When reserving trips, customers should be aware of potential delays due to holiday traffic and the need for alternate pickup or drop off locations due to the New Year’s Eve street closures in the Times Square area.
Long Island Rail Road
Christmas Eve
On Tuesday, Dec. 24, all LIRR trains will operate on a regular weekday schedule.
Christmas Day
On Wednesday, Dec. 25, all LIRR trains will operate on a Sunday schedule.
New Year’s Eve
On Tuesday, Dec. 31, there will be a total of 11 additional LIRR trains on the Babylon, Montauk, Ronkonkoma, Port Jefferson and Port Washington branches to Grand Central Madison or Penn Station beginning in the early evening to accommodate riders heading into the city for New Year’s Eve celebrations.
New Year’s Day
There will be a total of 12 additional trains beginning in the early overnight hours to accommodate riders heading back to Long Island from Penn Station or Grand Central Madison.
In addition, the LIRR will provide extra pre and post-event service to and from Elmont-UBS Arena for the Billy Joel concert scheduled for New Year’s Eve.
On Wednesday Jan. 1, all LIRR trains will operate on a Sunday schedule.
Metro-North Railroad
Christmas Week
Beginning Monday, Dec. 23, Metro-North will operate on a Friday schedule on the three East of Hudson lines, with extra mid-day and mid-afternoon service. On Christmas Day, Metro-North will operate hourly service with regular weekend service on the Wassaic, Danbury and Waterbury branches.
On the West of Hudson Pascack Valley and Port Jervis lines, Metro-North will operate on a regular weekday schedule each day with some service adjustments on Christmas Eve and a weekend schedule on Christmas Day.
New Year’s Week
Beginning Monday, Dec. 30, Metro-North will operate on a regular weekday schedule on the three East of Hudson lines with extra late-evening and post-midnight service on New Year’s Eve and into New Year’s morning.
On New Year’s Day, Metro-North will operate hourly service, with extra trains on the New Haven Line, and regular weekend service on the Wassaic, Danbury and Waterbury branches.
The West of Hudson Lines will operate on a regular weekday schedule, with extra service in the late evening and after midnight on New Year’s Eve, and a weekend schedule on New Year’s Day.
Bridges and Tunnels
Christmas Week
Temporary daytime road closures at all MTA Bridges and Tunnels will end at 3:00 p.m. Monday, Dec. 23. There will be no road closures permitted on Tuesday, Dec. 24 and Wednesday, Dec. 25. On Thursday, Dec. 26, roadwork may resume and soft lane closures may be implemented in the off-peak direction during the morning rush hour period as traffic volumes and regional conditions permit.
New Year’s Eve Week
Temporary daytime road closures at all MTA Bridges and Tunnels will end at 1:00pm Tuesday, Dec. 31 through Thursday, Jan. 2, 2025. On Thursday, Jan. 2, roadwork may resume and soft lane closures may be implemented in the off-peak direction during the morning rush hour period as traffic volumes and regional conditions permit.
For real-time service updates and information, customers can use the following options:
MTA app – Customers who use the comprehensive MTA smartphone app will see real-time travel information for all MTA services all in one place.
TrainTime app - The MTA’s TrainTime app is the one-stop app for commuter rail customers in the region on both Long Island Rail Road and Metro-North Railroad, showing all train schedules for 30 days in the future.
mta.info – The “Service Status” box at mta.info is always the definitive source for the latest status for each line.
MTA Weekender – Customers can sign up for the “MTA Weekender,” a weekly digest of major weekend service changes throughout the transit system.
X – X users can follow @MTA, @NYCTSubway, and @NYCTBus for service updates and customer service support.
WhatsApp – Customers can chat with NYC Transit via WhatsApp. Riders can receive customer service support in their native language through the help of Google Translate.
For those who prefer to contact the MTA by telephone, information is available by dialing 511. Connecticut customers should call 877-690-5114. Those who are deaf or hard of hearing can use their preferred service provider for the free 711 relay to reach the MTA at 511.