Image source, Getty Images

We’re now well into day three of the Long Island Rail Road shutdown, New York City’s longest transit strike in more than 30 years.

Here’s what we know so far:

• ⁠⁠Hundreds of thousands of commuters coming to the city from Long Island have been impacted as train services from the area have been completely shuttered
• ⁠⁠City and state officials have urged people to work from home and prepare for heavy traffic, but the city has also provided some bus services from Long Island into Queens
• The parties are back at the bargaining table this morning after an impasse over the weekend between transit unions and MTA officials. Workers are demanding a contract, better benefits, and fair wages
• Commuters in Manhattan tell the BBC they’ve been waiting around for transit updates that never come. Others trying to get to Manhattan say the delays have made them late for their jobs that don’t have work-from-home options

As the first weekday rush hour of the strike comes to an end, there’s still no contract and no end in sight to the train stoppage.

We’re ending our live coverage here now, but we will bring you more on this story in the days to come. Meanwhile, you can read more on the strike and its impact here:

Rush-hour chaos sweeps New York after busiest rail system shutdown

Sakshi Venkatraman
Reporting from New York's Penn Station

Other than NYU’s graduation ceremony, there are no events scheduled at Madison Square Garden for tonight.

However, the New York Knicks will play the Cleveland Cavaliers in the NBA Eastern Conference Finals there tomorrow. That should mean a big surge in the number of people using Penn Station in addition to regular commuters.

Negotiations between unions and the MTA are ongoing, but even if a contract is reached today, it may take a while for service to return to normal.

The BBC’s US partner, CBS News, reports that it will take a day or so to inspect the tracks and equipment and get the crew in place to resume operations.

That could still make things difficult for Long Island-based Knicks fans.

Grace Eliza Goodwin
Reporting from Jamaica, Queens

Sam, a 28-year-old pharmacy student, is headed into Penn Station this morning from Ronkonkoma, Long Island.

This morning’s commute, he says, has been “a little inconvenient, but I would say the LIRR is mitigating the situation well with the buses.”

“It hasn't been much of a problem for me,” he says, adding that he got on the free shuttle bus in Ronkonkoma right away.

Image source, BBC / Grace Eliza Goodwin

Sakshi Venkatraman
Reporting from New York's Penn Station

Right above Penn Station, which is mostly below street level, New York’s Madison Square Garden is hosting a New York University graduation ceremony.

As striking railworkers march and chant, a sea of purple caps and gowns has descended on the arena.

The graduates are walking by the picket line on their way to their celebration, looking vaguely confused about the commotion.

Image source, BBC / Sakshi Venkatraman

Grace Eliza Goodwin
Reporting from Jamaica, Queens

Warren, wearing a black suit and tie, is rushing from the free shuttle bus drop-off point in Jamaica, Queens to the F train to make it to work on time.

“With the railroad being down, it made it bad,” he says of his commute this morning.

“I got to be at work at 10:15,” he tells me around 09:30 local time. “It's giving me friction on being on time.”

Warren says he had to wake up two hours earlier than usual today, and waited an hour for the free shuttle bus in Elmont, Long Island.

“They're talking about working from home. I do security. I can't work from home,” he says.

Sakshi Venkatraman
Reporting from New York's Penn Station

As their leaders sit at the bargaining table with MTA officials, a large crowd of LIRR union workers is now protesting outside Penn Station.

They’re marching in a circle and chanting as commuters walk past. Their signs call for fair wages, a fair contract, and “dignity”.

“No justice, no service,” they chant.

Image source, BBC / Sakshi Venkatraman

Grace Eliza Goodwin
Reporting from Jamaica, Queens

An MTA worker who’s helping direct passengers inside a Jamaica, Queens F train subway station, tells me it’s not very busy today.

Free shuttle buses, which the MTA is offering in place of the LIRR, are dropping off passengers on the street above us, so they can then take the F train into the city.

“It's a pretty regular day,” he says.

Most of the passengers he’s spoken with today have an idea of where they’re going; they just want to make sure they’re in the right place, he says.

“But not too many people are confused,” he says. “They are okay.”

The Long Island Rail Road is a commuter transit system that takes some 250,000 customers across Long Island and into New York City, with nearly 1,000 daily trains.

It is the "busiest commuter railroad in North America," according to the LIRR.

It covers some 700 miles (1,126km) of track and runs from Midtown Manhattan across the borough of Queens and then out into the suburbs of Nassau and Suffolk counties, home to some three million people.

Image source, Getty Images

Sakshi Venkatraman
Reporting from New York's Penn Station

The Dunkin' Donuts and Pret-a-Manger restaurants in the LIRR terminal are probably trafficked by hundreds of people on any given weekday morning. But as the strike continues, employees tell me they have never seen it this slow.

“I normally can’t even count how many people there are in here,“an employee at Pret tells me. “The last few days though, it’s barely anyone.”

“I worked this weekend,” a cashier at Dunkin told me. “There is no work. It’s so slow.” Another Dunkin employee says the popular coffee and pastry chain is usually crowded at this time of the morning, as commuters grab a bite before heading to work.

“Since this weekend, no one is here,” he said.

Image source, BBC / Sakshi Venkatraman

Sakshi Venkatraman
Reporting from New York's Penn Station

As we wait to hear news from the bargaining table, rush hour is really beginning to pick up in New York City.

At Penn Station, the crowds are growing, but the LIRR terminal remains empty, with a few confused passengers milling around the “service suspended” signs.

The busiest train terminal in New York City also receives Amtrak and New Jersey Transit trains. Those are running just fine this morning. It is also a major subway interchange.

In total, 600,000 people pass through the station on a normal day.

A coffee cart vendor outside the main entrance told me business today has been slower so far.

Grace Eliza Goodwin
Reporting from Jamaica, Queens

Image source, BBC / Grace Eliza Goodwin

I’m at a pick-up and drop-off location for the free shuttle buses the MTA is offering in lieu of the LIRR.

There are large signs zip-tied to nearby light poles advertising the buses at the makeshift stop.

A couple of dozen people are lined up to get on an arriving bus, which is larger than a standard MTA bus.

There are a handful of MTA workers in orange vests standing by to direct passengers.

Here's a map of where the buses are taking commuters:

Image source, MTA

Sakshi Venkatraman
Reporting from New York's Penn Station

I just spoke to two travelers, a couple from Brazil who are trying to make a flight in a few hours at New York's JFK International Airport.

In normal times, the Long Island Rail Road offers service to the airport from the heart of Manhattan via Jamaica, Queens, but given the strike, people have had to change their plans.

“We didn’t know about this,” one of the tourists said of the shutdown.

New York Governor Kathy Hochul, a Democrat, has blamed the Trump administration for the railroad strike in her state, spurring US President Donald Trump to fire back over the weekend.

Hochul said that the rail disruption “is the direct result of reckless actions by the Trump Administration to cut mediation short and push these negotiations toward a strike”. She also asserted that the MTA is negotiating in good faith and that her priority is to protect affordability for riders and ensure fairness across the workforce.

Responding on Truth Social on Saturday, the Republican president branded Hochul a “failed” governor and “Dumocrat”. He also said that he didn’t hear about the dispute until Saturday morning.

Trump cast blame back on Hochul, saying that she “should not have allowed this to happen” while endorsing a Republican challenger for New York governor.

“If you can’t solve it, let me know, and I’ll show you how to properly get things done. This would be an easy one for BRUCE BLAKEMAN. He should be your next Governor and New York State would turn around fast, including far less Crime, and much lower taxes!!! Kathy, call me if you can’t do it, I will get it done - I know all the players, great people!!!”

Sakshi Venkatraman
Reporting from New York's Penn Station

Brooklyn resident Mekan Esenov, 22, is trying to catch a flight at the smaller Brookhaven Airport on Long Island this morning.

He got to the train station well in advance, only to discover service had been canceled. “There are no trains,” he said. “We keep waiting, and nothing is changing.”

Esenov and his friend have been waiting by the LIRR terminal, hoping that something will change, but he says there have been no updates so far.

“We looked at Uber, but it’s like $250,” he says. He adds that he’s tried to get in touch with his friends, but because of the early hour, no one is answering.

Image source, BBC / Sakshi Venkatraman

We're hearing now that negotiations between the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) and the striking unions have begun again.

The negotiations went into the night past 01:00 EST (06:00 GMT).

They have now restarted, just as commuters are beginning what is expected to be a more stressful journey to work.

If an agreement is reached, it will still be some time before trains can be repositioned to resume service.

Grace Eliza Goodwin
Reporting from Jamaica, Queens

A union representative from the Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen, who had been leading his fellow picketers in a chant, tells me he and other union members would rather be at work today.

“We’re hardworking men and women,” Olivier Desinor says. “We have projects we were working on. We had our usual routine.”

But, he says, they're out here today without pay, fighting for a fair wage to take care of their families.

“It's not one of the best positions we want to be in, but, thankfully, we're together in solidarity, and we're gonna get through this.“

Image source, BBC / Grace Eliza Goodwin

Image source, EPA

New York Governor Kathy Hochul has urged the unions and the MTA to reach an agreement, warning that an extended shutdown would cause widespread disruption.

The coalition of unions representing LIRR workers says it is seeking improved pay and conditions after years without wage increases.

Hochul said that as governor, she has made “historic investments in the LIRR” and worked with the MTA to increase service by 40%, improve safety for riders and workers, secure the railroad’s fiscal future after the pandemic, and deliver “transformative projects“ like the Main Line Third Track and Grand Central Madison.

She has insisted that the MTA is negotiating in good faith and that her priority is to protect affordability for riders and ensure fairness across the workforce.

Although she said that workers deserve fair wages and benefits, she noted that the labour unions represent the highest-paid workers of any railroad in the nation. She also said that it is “unacceptable” that they are demanding contracts that could raise fares as much as 8%, pit workers against one another, and risk tax hikes for Long Islanders.

The governor has also detailed MTA’s contingency plan for the work stoppage and urged all non-essential workers to work from home on Monday, if possible.

Grace Eliza Goodwin
Reporting from Jamaica, Queens

“No contract,” a teamster with a bullhorn says to the crowd of picketing union workers.

“No trains!” They yell back in unison.

“Hochul? Janno?” The teamster with the bullhorn says, referring to New York Governor Kathy Hochul and MTA CEO Janno Lieber.

“Lies!” They holler back.

A few passing pedestrians are cheering along and mentioning their support for the picketers.

Image source, BBC / Grace Eliza Goodwin

Sakshi Venkatraman
Reporting from New York's Penn Station

Boards that at this time on a regular day are filled with train times are now empty, showing, like they have for the past two days, no trains going into or out of Long Island.

Image source, BBC / Sakshi Venkatraman

It’s an eerie feeling seeing the LIRR terminal completely devoid of people and trains.

During regular service, train times are loudly announced, and throngs of people waiting on the platforms make the mad dash to their trains.

Oftentimes, at the busiest hours, it’s hard to find a seat. Today, it’s quiet and emptiest I have ever seen it.

Image source, BBC / Sakshi Venkatraman