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4/22/2021
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo yesterday disclosed new reconstruction options for renovating New York City Penn Station — the nation's busiest transportation facility — as part of the proposed Empire Station Complex.
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority, Amtrak and New Jersey Transit are working together to establish a framework that would unify the separate railroads' concourses into one space following a yearlong strategic re-envisioning process, supported by FXCollaborative and WSP, according to a news release issued by the governor's office.
This project, in combination with the new tracks and platforms to be built as part of Penn Station Expansion, will help accommodate the future volume of riders using both the existing Penn Station and the newly expanded facility.
Ridership is expected to grow to 830,000 daily users in 2038, about 54% of whom will use MTA Long Island Rail Road, MTA Metro-North Railroad and the subway, and 42% will use NJ Transit and the remainder will use Amtrak.
The first renovation approach would leverage the existing configuration's two-level boarding configuration while improving existing Penn's layout, creating a central atrium, and repurposing some of Amtrak's space for NJ Transit's commuters and operations.
Another approach calls for creating an open, single-level concourse, eliminating all low ceiling heights and simplifying entry and exit routes from trains and the street level while also creating new large circulation areas bigger than the Great Hall of Grand Central Terminal.