Fare Question

So I have been in these tin cans for 30 years, I have periodically read this board - but I am stumped over this one.

Bought an off peak Port Jeff-Woodside 10-->1 last night. I ended up getting off in Jamaica to meet a friend at JFK.

Returning from Manhattan today heading back out east, I was under the assumption I still had a valid 1-->3 ticket remaining from last night that went unused so I planned to use the residual of last night's ticket for my return today and purchased a separate Jamaica-->Port Jeff ticket.

Conductor in NYP would not honor the 10-->1 ticket from last night that had only been punched once westbound for today's NYP to Jamaica. Had to buy an extention of ride. I protested for about 10 minutes and said "if I was going from Jamaica to NYP this would be valid, so why aren't you honoring the other way?"

Who is right and who is wrong?

You are wrong. The direction of that ticket was established as westbound and cannot be changed. You can still use it for a Jamaica to Penn journey though, so I recommend you save it for your next westbound trip into Zone 1 and buy a ticket to Jamaica.

I relinquished it because I felt bad. Oh well guess I learned my lesson! Thanks.

Did the conductor require that you relinquish the ticket or did you voluntarily do so? Hopefully the latter, since the Jamaica to Penn Station portion of the ticket would still be valid.

The tariff is no longer clear on this. When the LIRR abolished "Stopovers" on October 1, 2015, it (perhaps inadvertently) abolished the right of this passenger to split the trip on his ticket. This would mean that the ticket tendered is valid for a continuous ride or a ride on the first connecting train only to the stated final destination. Thus the passenger's desired use of this ticket on two separate days would not be permitted as the tariff reads today.

Note that no refund would be given for the unused (or perhaps unserviced) portion of his ticket.

No refund would be given. You're right that the tariff has a gray area, but presenting a half-serviced ticket punched in the westbound direction on a westbound train, the crew has no way of knowing what day or train the first half was serviced on.

Also he used the First portion going West , so he can't use the remainder on an eastbound train, it's a one way ticket. ONE WAY. so if you go WEST that is one way. You can't go west and then east, that would be TWO ways.