Here is the best article yet for those who don't know the area:
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/18/ny...b3aace&ei=5070
It's called "The Commuting Conundrum" and it has a graphic attachment with all the train stations in NY, CT, and NJ and how long it takes to get to Manhattan. It also lists ontime performance. It's pretty accurate - I commute from Bethpage on LI and it does reflect that we have an express train that will get us to Penn Station in about 40 minutes.
Here's the link to the graphic:
http://www.nytimes.com/imagepages/20...N_GRAPHIC.html
Best!