diff --git a/runtime/Java/src/org/antlr/v4/runtime/atn/ATNState.java b/runtime/Java/src/org/antlr/v4/runtime/atn/ATNState.java
index aaf5dbd31..412c3321b 100644
--- a/runtime/Java/src/org/antlr/v4/runtime/atn/ATNState.java
+++ b/runtime/Java/src/org/antlr/v4/runtime/atn/ATNState.java
@@ -179,6 +179,10 @@ public abstract class ATNState {
 	}
 
 	public void addTransition(Transition e) {
+		addTransition(transitions.size(), e);
+	}
+
+	public void addTransition(int index, Transition e) {
 		if (transitions.isEmpty()) {
 			epsilonOnlyTransitions = e.isEpsilon();
 		}
@@ -187,7 +191,7 @@ public abstract class ATNState {
 			epsilonOnlyTransitions = false;
 		}
 
-		transitions.add(e);
+		transitions.add(index, e);
 	}
 
 	public Transition transition(int i) { return transitions.get(i); }
diff --git a/tool/src/org/antlr/v4/automata/ParserATNFactory.java b/tool/src/org/antlr/v4/automata/ParserATNFactory.java
index c9196b897..b1589d6da 100644
--- a/tool/src/org/antlr/v4/automata/ParserATNFactory.java
+++ b/tool/src/org/antlr/v4/automata/ParserATNFactory.java
@@ -467,14 +467,9 @@ public class ParserATNFactory implements ATNFactory {
 	public Handle optional(@NotNull GrammarAST optAST, @NotNull Handle blk) {
 		BlockStartState blkStart = (BlockStartState)blk.left;
 
-		blkStart.nonGreedy = !((QuantifierAST)optAST).isGreedy();
-		if (((QuantifierAST)optAST).isGreedy()) {
-			epsilon(blkStart, blk.right);
-		} else {
-			Transition existing = blkStart.removeTransition(0);
-			epsilon(blkStart, blk.right);
-			blkStart.addTransition(existing);
-		}
+		boolean greedy = ((QuantifierAST)optAST).isGreedy();
+		blkStart.nonGreedy = !greedy;
+		epsilon(blkStart, blk.right, !greedy);
 
 		optAST.atnState = blk.left;
 		return blk;
@@ -587,8 +582,15 @@ public class ParserATNFactory implements ATNFactory {
 		return new Handle(left, right);
 	}
 
-	void epsilon(ATNState a, @NotNull ATNState b) {
-		if ( a!=null ) a.addTransition(new EpsilonTransition(b));
+	protected void epsilon(ATNState a, @NotNull ATNState b) {
+		epsilon(a, b, false);
+	}
+
+	protected void epsilon(ATNState a, @NotNull ATNState b, boolean prepend) {
+		if ( a!=null ) {
+			int index = prepend ? 0 : a.getNumberOfTransitions();
+			a.addTransition(index, new EpsilonTransition(b));
+		}
 	}
 
 	/** Define all the rule begin/end ATNStates to solve forward reference