The tunnel used by trains going to Grand Central Madison was completed in the early 1970s, but it's too small for the LIRR’s diesel trains. Officials at the MTA were aware the train fleet could cause problems for the new service as far back as 2016, according to records from the Federal Transit Administration. To run the new service, the MTA has been forced to operate fewer trains to and from Penn Station, which means more riders must make frustrating transfers at Jamaica Terminal. And the MTA's failure to order new LIRR cars has forced the agency to bring some of its oldest and least reliable train cars out of retirement. That has limited service into the East Side Access terminal. Aside from the schedule confusion and marathon transfers, there’s a much simpler reason why last month’s opening of full service to Grand Central Madison has caused problems for riders: Nearly a quarter of the Long Island Rail Road’s train cars can’t run through the East River tunnel that serves the new station.
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