Metro-North Provides Extra Service for Thanksgiving Holiday Weekend, November 21-25
Off-Peak Fares in Effect During Holiday Weekend
Avoid the traffic, save money, ride with family and friends, and make travel on MTA Metro-North Railroad part of your Thanksgiving holiday plans. The Railroad is providing special service and extra trains throughout the Thanksgiving holiday weekend. Off-peak fares will be in effect on Thanksgiving Day, Thursday, November 22, through Sunday, November 25, and customers can take advantage of free parking at many stations.
Customers are encouraged to buy tickets in advance, and those traveling into Manhattan can purchase a 10-trip off-peak ticket to save 30 to 40 percent off the one-way fare. The 10-trip ticket can be used by more than one person, even when you are traveling together. The Family Fare costs $1 per ticket for up to four children (ages 5 to 11) when they are traveling with a fare-paying adult.
A Thanksgiving weekend timetable is available at Grand Central Terminal and outlying stations.
Customers can also find East of Hudson holiday schedule information online at: http://web.mta.info/mnr/html/thanksgiving2018.htm
West of Hudson holiday schedule information is available online at: http://web.mta.info/mnr/html/wohthanksgiving2018.htm
Wednesday, November 21, the Day Before Thanksgiving
Historically, the day before Thanksgiving is the busiest travel day of the year for Metro-North customers. On Wednesday, November 22, there will be 18 early getaway trains that depart Grand Central Terminal during the mid-day. The extra service includes five extra trains on the Hudson Line between 1:38 p.m. and 4:11 p.m., three additional trains on the Harlem Line between 2:15 p.m. and 3:34 p.m., and ten extra trains on the New Haven Line between 12:58 p.m. and 4:00 p.m. Times are shown in the current timetables. Due to the busier mid-day travel patterns, some evening trains may be canceled or combined, so customers are advised to double-check timetables, apps or web before traveling.
For West-of-Hudson customers, early getaway trains will operate on both the Port Jervis Line and Pascack Valley Line on Wednesday, November 21.
On the Port Jervis Line, the 2:41 p.m. train from Hoboken to Middletown (with a connection departing New York Penn Station at 2:33 p.m.) is extended to Port Jervis. The 6:15 p.m. departure from Hoboken (6:03 p.m. train from Penn Station-NY) will not operate.
On the Pascack Valley Line, there will be a 2:58 p.m. departure from Hoboken (with a connection departing New York’s Penn Station at 2:51 p.m.) making select stops in New Jersey before arriving at Pearl River, Nanuet and Spring Valley. To accommodate this train, the 5:58 p.m. departure from Hoboken (5:51 p.m. connection from Penn Station-NY) will not operate.
Thanksgiving Day, Thursday, November 22
Metro-North will provide additional inbound morning service for customers heading to the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, which kicks off at 9 a.m. at 77th Street and Central Park West and ends in front of Macy’s at Herald Square (34th Street). There is also expanded outbound service starting in the late morning and continuing through mid-afternoon. Customers leaving New York after the parade must show a ticket before boarding trains at Grand Central or Harlem-125th Street Station. On this day last year, about 30,000 customers departed Grand Central between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. Finally, there will be extra trains in the evening for customers returning to New York City after their Thanksgiving feasts.
West of Hudson, a regular holiday/weekend schedule is in effect for the Port Jervis Line and Pascack Valley Line, with one additional round trip on the Port Jervis Line (shown in the October 29 NJ Transit timetable). Parade-goers can take a 6:22 a.m. departure from Port Jervis arriving in Hoboken at 8:30 a.m. (a connection at Secaucus Junction arrives at New York Penn Station at 8:39 a.m.). After the parade, there is a 12:21 p.m. departure from Hoboken (12:14 p.m. from New York Penn Station) that operates express to Suffern before making all stops to Port Jervis.
Friday, November 23, the Day After Thanksgiving
On Friday, November 23, Metro-North will operate on an expanded Saturday schedule with additional inbound service in the morning and outbound service in the afternoon to accommodate the Friday workforce and Black Friday shoppers, as well as half-hourly service on the Harlem Line to/from North White Plains.
West of Hudson, a regular weekday schedule is in effect for Friday, November 23.
Saturday and Sunday (Thanksgiving Weekend)
Metro-North will round out the holiday weekend schedule with extra trains and additional cars on existing trains. Service on Saturday, November 24, features upper Hudson and outer New Haven Line Shoppers’ Special service. On Sunday, November 25, trains run on a normal half-hourly schedule featuring outer New Haven Line Shoppers’ Specials.
A regular weekend schedule is in effect on Saturday, November 24, and Sunday, November 25, for the Port Jervis Line and Pascack Valley Line.
Off Peak & Family Fares in Effect Thursday, November 22 through Sunday, November 25
Customers are encouraged to buy tickets in advance, and those traveling into Manhattan can purchase a ten-trip off-peak ticket to save 30 to 40 percent off the one-way fare. The ticket can be used by more than one person, even when you are traveling together. The “Family Fare” costs $1 per ticket for up to four children (ages 5 to 11) when they are traveling with a fare-paying adult. Metro-North recommends customers use MTA eTtix®, the mobile ticketing app that enables you to purchase one-way, round trip, ten trip, weekly and monthly passes, as well as reduced fare tickets, child and family fare tickets and military tickets, on your smartphone or mobile device.
Many Channels for Service Updates
Information about the planned schedule changes noted in this press release, and all planned service changes, is available through Metro-North Railroad’s real-time service information sources.
MYmta app – Customers who use the new, comprehensive MYmta app will see real-time travel information for Metro-North and connecting services all in one place, with push notifications when service is not operating normally. As a caution, trains that start out their trips on time may experience delays en route. The Metro-North Train Time app also remains available for customers to access Metro-North train information.
MTA.info – The rail tab of the “Service Status” box at new.MTA.info is always the definitive source for the latest status for each line, updated every minute. In addition, customers can visit www.mta.info/mnr to see special service notices in the upper center of the page.
Email and text message service updates – Customers are urged to sign up to receive the alerts by visiting MyMTAAlerts.com. To avoid unwanted messages, a user can tailor the messages to the specific branch, and the specific times of day.
@MetroNorth on Twitter – Twitter users can follow @MetroNorth to receive updates of a similar nature to the email and text alerts, shortened to fit Twitter’s format.
The above communications channels can be accessed while at home or on the go. For customers who are located at stations, Metro-North will post the latest service updates on digital signs at station platforms and will make audio announcements over public address systems, and on-board announcements made by train crews.
For those who prefer the telephone, information is available from the Metro-North’s Customer Service Center by calling 511, the New York State Travel Information Line, and saying: “Metro-North Railroad.” For customers calling from Connecticut, the number is: 877-690-5114. Those who are deaf or hard of hearing can use their preferred service provider for the free 711 relay to reach Metro-North at 511.
