LIRR strike fallout: MTA official defends tentative deal that ended work stoppage as service resumes

A top MTA official defended on Tuesday the agency’s tentative deal with five Long Island Rail Road unions that ended their first strike in more than three decades as trains began rolling again at midday.

LIRR President Rob Free, during a May 19 news conference at the Jamaica LIRR station ahead of the return to service at noon, stood by the MTA’s decision to let the contract dispute boil over into a strike early Saturday.