Amtrak Unveils $8 Billion Penn Station Plan as MTA Rejects Partnership
Updated
Updated · Newsday · Jun 8
Amtrak Unveils $8 Billion Penn Station Plan as MTA Rejects Partnership
3 articles · Updated · Newsday · Jun 8
Summary
$8 billion is the expected cost of Amtrak’s Penn Station overhaul, which it says the MTA has declined to join as a project partner despite NJ Transit signing on.
220,000 square feet of open space would be created through wider platforms, new concourses and a new Eighth Avenue train hall built after acquiring and demolishing the 5,300-seat Infosys Theater at Madison Square Garden.
Amtrak’s Andy Byford said MTA participation would not weaken the agency’s lease rights and would better serve Long Island Rail Road riders, who make up a large share of Penn’s 600,000 daily users.
The dispute follows the Trump administration’s takeover of the redevelopment from the MTA a year ago; MTA chief Janno Lieber has said the agency is willing to participate but will not surrender existing lease protections.