Metro-North Schedule Changes Start Saturday

Written by BARBARA HEINS (Patch Staff)

Metro-North Railroad has announced that new schedules will go into effect the weekend of Oct. 3 and 4 as the railroad continues making improvements along its right-of-way.

• Weekday schedules will feature minimal service changes on all lines.

• On the Hudson Line a special construction schedule will be in effect from Oct. 3 through Nov. 15. (See details below.) Hudson Line customers should use the new timetable beginning on Saturday, Oct. 3. The prior timetable with the end date of Oct. 3 will no longer be in effect.

The railroad said in a statement, “Our intent is to provide you with a schedule you can count on as we rebuild track and infrastructure at critical locations. Most of this work will be done during off-peak hours and on weekends in order to minimize any impact on your commute.”

Here are some key changes to look for:

On the New Haven Line

Inbound on weekdays, Greenwich will be added as a stop to the 7:56 a.m. train from New Canaan (previously the 7:58 a.m. train), to permit convenient connections to Greenwich for customers arriving in Stamford on the 5:50 a.m. Shore Line East train from New London.

This change will not affect the train’s 9:06 a.m. arrival time in Grand Central.

On the Hudson Line

Metro-North is doing major switch replacement at a key location in the Bronx near Yankee Stadium which will require a Special Weekend Construction Schedule to be in effect from Oct. 3 through Nov. 15.

This will require a single-track operation in a six-mile section from Harlem-125th Street through Marble Hill. And that means we will not be able to operate our usual weekend service through the work zone.

Customers traveling from points north of Croton-Harmon will need to make an across-platform change of trains at Croton-Harmon. In addition, the semi-express trains that operate between Croton-Harmon and Grand Central Terminal (in both directions) will only operate between Croton-Harmon and Marble Hill; customers riding one of these trains will change trains at Marble Hill to continue their trip. These trains are indicated by a green arrow in the timetable. Please be sure to check the timetable for the affected trains. Local trains between Croton-Harmon and Grand Central in both directions will operate normally.

In addition three southbound trains from Poughkeepsie (the 9:40 AM train on Saturdays, and the 10:40 AM and 3:40 PM trains Saturdays and Sundays) and three northbound trains to Poughkeepsie (the 4:14 PM train on Saturdays, and the 5:14 PM and 6:14 PM trains) will not operate for the duration of the work.

This special weekend construction schedule will be included in the new Oct. 3 Hudson Line timetable. Be sure to check the weekend schedule for details, or visit the Schedules page.

On weekdays, the 9:15 a.m. train from Poughkeepsie will return to its 9 a.m. departure time, reflecting the completion of summer track work in the area.

(A new Hudson Line timetable will be issued on Nov. 16, when the weekend construction is complete.)

On the Harlem Line

On weekends, stops have been adjusted on the 3:40 p.m., 4:40 p.m. and 5:40 p.m. trains from Southeast to reflect ridership demand, make them consistent with other trains in similar time periods, and to provide more reliable service during necessary track maintenance work.

Be sure to check the Oct. 4 timetable for possible minor adjustments to your commute.

New timetables will be available in Grand Central, at outlying ticket offices, and on the Schedules page.

Train information also is available via the Metro-North Interactive Schedules pageand TrainTime App.