Monday, May 18 is the first weekday under the MTA’s rebuilt rush-hour schedule on four of the busiest IRT lines, and the first commute after a weekend of major track replacement work in East New York. It is also Day Three of the Long Island Rail Road strike, which will push tens of thousands of riders onto the F, A, 7, and E trains for the morning rush. Below is the line-by-line breakdown.
What Lines Are Affected
- 2, 3, 4 and 5 trains — New rush-hour timetable begins Monday, May 18
- 3 train (Brooklyn) — Track replacement between Crown Heights-Utica Av and New Lots Av wraps by 10 p.m. Sunday; normal Monday service expected
- F train — Heavier-than-normal Queens crowding from LIRR shuttle bus riders transferring at Jamaica-179 St
- A train — Heavier crowding at Howard Beach-JFK Airport from LIRR shuttle bus transfers
- E and J/Z trains — Spillover at Jamaica Center-Parsons/Archer from Huntington and Ronkonkoma shuttle riders
The Big Change: New Rush-Hour Service on 2, 3, 4 and 5
Effective Monday, the MTA is rolling out a redesigned weekday rush-hour timetable on the 2, 3, 4 and 5 lines. The agency says the new schedule shifts trips toward the actual edges of the morning and evening peaks, where ridership has rebounded fastest since the pandemic.
On the 2 line northbound, the MTA is adding one trip each hour between 6-7 a.m., 7-8 a.m., 8-9 a.m., and 5-6 p.m. To pay for those additions, one northbound trip each is being eliminated from the 5-6 a.m., 9-10 a.m., and 6-7 p.m. hours.
On the 3 line, one northbound trip is being added at 7 a.m. and at 7 and 9 p.m., while trips are being removed during the 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. hours. The 4 and 5 lines see similar shoulder-hour adjustments.
Translation for riders: if your usual train arrives between 5:50 and 6:10 a.m. or between 5:50 and 6:10 p.m., expect a slightly different schedule starting Monday. Pull up the MTA app on Sunday night and re-check your departure.
East New York Track Work Ends Sunday Night
The weekend’s biggest single disruption — the 3 train suspension between Crown Heights-Utica Av and New Lots Av for track replacement work — is scheduled to clear by 10 p.m. Sunday. Free B99 shuttle buses have been running the gap all weekend.
By Monday morning, 3 trains should be operating their normal route to New Lots Av. If you boarded a 3 anywhere east of Utica this weekend and rode the B99, you are back to normal service for Monday’s commute.
LIRR Strike Spillover: Plan for Crowded F, A, E and 7 Trains
This is the variable nobody can fully model. With LIRR service suspended systemwide, MTA shuttle buses will run from Ronkonkoma, Huntington, Bay Shore, Hicksville, Mineola, and Hempstead Lake State Park to four subway transfer points: Jamaica-179 St (F), Jamaica Center-Parsons/Archer (E, J, Z), Howard Beach-JFK Airport (A), and Flushing-Main St (7) via Nassau Inter-County Express (NICE) bus connections.
Expect those four stations and the trains that leave them to be significantly more crowded than a normal Monday morning between 6 a.m. and 9 a.m.
Bottom Line for Monday
The new 2/3/4/5 timetable is the real story for most NYC riders. The LIRR strike is the story for anyone connecting from Long Island. The East New York track work is done. Check the MTA app before you leave.
Sources: MTA Press Release on 2/3/4/5 Service Enhancements, MTA LIRR Strike Service Notice, MTA Weekender May 15-18, 2026.
