Penn Station Access

Map of the 2 proposed routes and 6 proposed stations of the Penn Station Access project

Penn Station Access is a public works project proposed by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority in New York City. The goal of the project is to allow Metro-North Railroad commuter trains to access Penn Station on Manhattan's West Side, using existing trackage owned by Amtrak. Metro North trains currently terminate exclusively at Grand Central on Manhattan's East Side. The project would complement the ongoing East Side Access project, and would commence in two separate phases. The first phase would add four new stations on the Northeast Corridor line in the Bronx and route New Haven Line trains to Penn Station, while the second phase would add two more stations on Manhattan's West Side on the Empire Connection, which would be served by the Hudson Line.

Key components

First proposed in 1999 by the FTA and Metro North Railroad,[1] using three miles of trackage,[2] the project would also involve the construction of six new Metro-North stations in the Bronx and Manhattan, allowing riders in these areas to easily access Penn Station, Westchester, Dutchess, and Putnam counties upstate as well as Fairfield and New Haven counties in Connecticut. [3][4] Existing Metro-North riders would have the choice of arriving at either Penn Station or Grand Central on the New Haven Line and the Hudson Line.[5]

Penn Station Access would also provide system resiliency to protect service in the event of natural or other disasters.[2] In order to accommodate more trains, there would be upgraded power and signal systems, the installation of new track and the realignment of existing track, and the replacement of railroad bridges. Metro-North service to Penn Station will begin after the completion of the East Side Access project.[6]

Phase One

The first piece of Penn Station Access would route New Haven Line trains down Amtrak's Northeast Corridor to Penn Station. The New Haven Line to Grand Central splits off from the Northeast Corridor near New Rochelle; the Northeast Corridor (also known here as the Hell Gate Line) continues to Penn Station, crossing the Hell Gate Bridge into Queens, and entering Manhattan through the East River Tunnels also used by the Long Island Rail Road. This phase also includes the construction of four new Metro-North stations in the Bronx to be served by the New Haven Line, tentatively located in Co-Op City, Morris Park, Parkchester/Van Nest, and Hunts Point.[4] The stations would provide fast, direct rides to West Midtown and facilitate reverse-commuting trips to Westchester County and Connecticut.[2] Previously, a station was also considered to be built in Astoria, however analysis showed that there wouldn’t be enough riders to justify the high cost of constructing a station.[7][8] The construction of a station was projected to cost over $20 million, and the station would only be able to be 4-car lengths long. The station would only have a projected ridership of 310,367.[8] Recently, local residents have pushed to have a Metro-North station built in Astoria between 41st Street and 44th Street, or at Northern Boulevard and Broadway in Woodside.[9][10][11]

In its 2015-2019 Capital Program, the MTA budgeted $695 million for New Haven Line Penn Station Access work, including track, structures, signal, power and communications work along the Hell Gate Line, specifications for rolling stock for the line, and construction of the four new stations.[6] The MTA plans to complete necessary environmental and federal reviews by 2017. New York Governor Andrew Cuomo voiced support for the project in his 2014 State of the State address.[2]

Existing service

New Haven Line service to Penn Station already exists in a very limited fashion; the Train to the Game runs between New Haven and New Jersey Transit's Meadowlands Sports Complex station to bring riders to Sunday 1 PM NFL games played by the New York Jets and New York Giants. This special service, operated using New Jersey Transit's equipment, makes a stop at Penn Station, but that is only a secondary benefit of the operation.

Phase Two

The second part of the project would bring Hudson Line trains into Penn Station using Amtrak's Empire Connection on Manhattan's West Side. The Empire Connection splits off from the Hudson Line near Spuyten Duyvil and is currently used by Amtrak's Empire Corridor trains traveling from Upstate New York, Canada, and other destinations. The majority of the Empire Connection is not electrified, so the M3 and M7 electric railcars in use on the Hudson Line are currently unable to travel to Penn Station. This phase includes a proposal for two new Metro-North stations to be served by the Hudson Line. Both stations would be located in Manhattan along the Empire Connection: one at West 125th Street in Manhattanville and the other near 62nd Street on the Upper West Side.[12]

Possible Harlem Line service

It has been proposed to have Harlem Line access to Penn Station as well by reactivating the Port Morris Branch, which would connect the Harlem Line to the Hell's Gate Line.[11]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Penn Station Access Study". Mta.info. Retrieved 2015-04-23.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Metro-North Penn Station Access" (PDF). mta.info. Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Retrieved February 17, 2016.
  3. ↑ "Penn Station Access Study". Mta.info. Retrieved 2015-04-23.
  4. 1 2 "Final Scoping Document : Major Investment Study / Draft Environmental Impact Statement for Penn Station Access" (PDF). Web.mta.info. Retrieved 2015-04-23.
  5. ↑ Stephen Jacob Smith. "West Side vs. East Side (Access): Upper West Side May Get Metro-North Stop". Observer.com. Retrieved 2015-04-23.
  6. 1 2 "MTA 2015-2019 Capital Program, pages 152 and 225" (PDF). Retrieved January 11, 2016.
  7. ↑ "Petition for Metro-North station in Queens". NY Daily News. Retrieved 2016-02-17.
  8. 1 2 "Metro-North PENN STATION ACCESS MIS/DEIS Comparative Screening Results Report (September 2002)" (PDF). mta.info. Parsons Brinckerhoff Quade & Douglas, Inc. September 2002. Retrieved February 17, 2016.
  9. ↑ "Locals Pushing for Metro-North Stations in Queens". DNAinfo New York. Retrieved 2016-02-17.
  10. ↑ "Petition for Metro-North station in Queens". NY Daily News. Retrieved 2016-02-17.
  11. 1 2 "Metro-North PENN STATION ACCESS MIS/DEIS Final Scoping Document" (PDF). mta.info. Parsons Brinckerhoff Quade & Douglas, Inc. Edwards and Kelcey, Inc. Retrieved February 17, 2016.
  12. ↑ "Penn Station Access Proposed "Build" Alternative" (PDF). mta.info. Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Retrieved February 17, 2016.

External links

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