No trains using this track appear on Ronkonkoma Branch schedules they appear on Montauk Branch and Babylon Branch schedules, and some appear on schedules for Mineola and Hicksville on the Main Line, if a stop is scheduled there. There are no stations along this stretch, and it is mainly used by trains with diesel-electric engines going express from Jamaica to Babylon. Some LIRR maps also include as part of the Ronkonkoma Branch the non-electrified Central Branch, which splits from the Ronkonkoma Branch east of Bethpage and connects with the more southern Montauk Branch, just west of Babylon. In 2016, the LIRR restored year-long weekend service between Ronkonkoma and Greenport. In 2013, the span of weekend service was extended to operate from the first weekend in May to the last weekend in November. Ultimately, weekday service remained, but weekend service outside of the summer season (defined as Memorial Day- Columbus Day) was discontinued. In 2010, the idea was entertained by the financially troubled MTA, who proposed eliminating all scoot service except for the popular summer weekend service. The LIRR has cited these ridership trends in attempts to end service east of Ronkonkoma. In 2018, the LIRR's second–least used service (the West Hempstead Branch) had more than 14 times as many riders as the Greenport Branch did in the same year, Greenport Branch riders accounted for 0.08% of LIRR ridership overall. The Greenport Branch has by far the lowest ridership among LIRR services for which data is available. Added in summer 2016, this is the only Greenport scoot trip to serve the New York City terminals. On Fridays during the summer, the eastbound trip to Riverhead is extended to Greenport, and one additional evening trip runs from Greenport to Jamaica, running express between Ronkonkoma and Jamaica. Weekend service consists of four round-trips each day between Ronkonkoma and Greenport. Also, one additional round trip is scheduled between Ronkonkoma and Riverhead (formerly Yaphank) each weekday. Three eastbound and four westbound scoots travel each weekday between Ronkonkoma and Greenport. This segment is served by diesel-electric "scoots", most of which terminate at Ronkonkoma, requiring customers traveling west of Ronkonkoma to transfer there. The relatively small amount of train movements on this segment are governed by train orders and timetable authority. The 46 miles (74 km) between Ronkonkoma and Greenport, known as the Greenport Branch, is the only remaining dark territory area on the Long Island Rail Road that does not have signals. The project was ultimately completed in 2018. In 2012, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) started adding a second track to the line between Farmingdale and Ronkonkoma to increase capacity. In the decades since, the amount of parking at Ronkonkoma has expanded. Commuters complained that the expanded parking facilities at Ronkonkoma built in anticipation of electrification were overcrowded and already inadequate, and that double-parking and vandalism were rampant. By September 1988, over 2,000 new riders during the morning rush hour had switched to the Ronkonkoma Branch, much of which occurred in the first month after electrification, faster than the LIRR expected. A survey of peak-hour Ronkonkoma Branch passengers conducted by the LIRR in April 1988 found that 42 percent of the branch's passengers were new to the line: 34 percent switched from other lines (the Port Jefferson and Montauk Branches), 6 percent were new to the LIRR as a whole and 2 percent recently returned to the LIRR. The $168.5 million project attracted many new passengers. Average rush-hour trip time from Ronkonkoma to Penn Station decreased from 97 minutes pre-electrification (including the mandatory transfer from a diesel to an electric train) to 71 minutes afterwards. Formerly, service on this segment was provided by diesel trains, which could not enter Penn Station, requiring a transfer. The western segment of the line from Hicksville to Ronkonkoma was electrified in 1987, creating a one-seat ride to Penn Station. Train #8054 at Farmingdale, using diesel locomotives due to construction.
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