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4/28/2015
MTA Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) last year logged its highest level of ridership since 2008, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) announced yesterday. LIRR reported 85.66 million passengers for 2014, a 3 percent increase compared with 2013. For its part, Metro-North Railroad carried 84.66 million passengers in 2014, a 1.5 percent year-over-year increase. In the past 30 years, ridership has grown 77 percent at Metro-North, MTA officials said in a press release."Across our region, New Yorkers are developing a mindset that riding the railroad isn’t just about going to work anymore. It’s becoming more and more integrated into the fabric of daily life," said MTA chief executive officer Thomas Prendergast, noting that both railroads are pursing projects in the 2015-19 Capital Program to improve rail travel.Higher overall ridership levels followed increased frequency of Metro-North trains, MTA officials said. The railroad added 66 weekly trains in October 2012, in addition to 187 more weekly trains in October 2013.