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New York Penn Station

Coordinates: 40°45′02″N 73°59′38″W / 40.750638°N 73.993899°W / 40.750638; -73.993899
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This article is about the inter-city and commuter rail station. For the subway stations, see 34th Street – Penn Station (IND Eighth Avenue Line) and 34th Street – Penn Station (IRT Broadway – Seventh Avenue Line). For Pennsylvania Station (1910–1963), see Pennsylvania Station (1910).
Not to be confused with Pennsylvania Avenue (IRT New Lots Line).

New York Pennsylvania Station
Amtrak station
MTA Long Island Rail Road commuter rail terminal
New Jersey Transit commuter rail terminal
MTA New York City Subway station (via transfer)
MTA New York City Bus terminal
Intercity bus terminal
Entrance on Seventh Avenue, with Madison Square Garden and Penn Plaza in the background.
General information
Location7th & 8th Avenues, between 31st & 33rd Streets
New York, NY 10001
Coordinates40°45′02″N 73°59′38″W / 40.750638°N 73.993899°W / 40.750638; -73.993899
Owned byAmtrak
Line(s)Amtrak:
  Acela
  Adirondack
  Cardinal
  Carolinian
  Crescent
  Empire Service
  Ethan Allen Express
  Keystone Service
  Lake Shore Limited
  Maple Leaf
  Pennsylvanian
  Northeast Regional
  Palmetto
  Silver Meteor
  Silver Star
  Vermonter
Long Island Rail Road:
  Babylon Branch
  Belmont Park Branch
  City Terminal Zone
  Far Rockaway Branch
  Hempstead Branch
  Long Beach Branch
  Montauk Branch
  Oyster Bay Branch
  Port Jefferson Branch
  Port Washington Branch
  Ronkonkoma Branch
  West Hempstead Branch
New Jersey Transit:Lua error: expandTemplate: template "NJT color" does not exist.Lua error: expandTemplate: template "NJT color" does not exist.Lua error: expandTemplate: template "NJT color" does not exist.Lua error: expandTemplate: template "NJT color" does not exist.Lua error: expandTemplate: template "NJT color" does not exist.
Platforms11
Tracks21
Connections
MTA New York City Subway:
"1" train​"2" train​"3" train at 34th Street – Penn Station (Seventh Avenue)
"A" train​"C" train​"E" train at 34th Street – Penn Station (Eighth Avenue)
Local Transit MTA New York City Bus: M4, M7, M20, M34/M34A SBS, Q32
Intercity Bus Atlantic Express: X23, X24
Intercity Bus Megabus: M21, M22, M23, M24, M27
Intercity Bus Greyhound Lines: BoltBus and NeOn
Shuttle Bus Eastern Shuttle
Airport Shuttle New York Airport Service: Thruway Motorcoach service to airports
Construction
AccessibleYes
Other information
Station codeAmtrak: NYP
IATA: ZYP
Fare zoneCity Terminal Zone (LIRR)
Zone 1 (New Jersey Transit)
History
Opened1910
Rebuilt1964
Passengers
201279,616 Average weekday[1] (NJT)
20139.556 million Annually[2] Increase 0.7% (Amtrak)
231,140 Average weekday[3] (LIRR)
Services
Preceding station   Amtrak   Following station
Template:Amtrak lines
Template:Amtrak lines
Template:Amtrak lines
Template:Amtrak linesTerminus
Template:Amtrak lines
Template:Amtrak lines
Template:Amtrak lines
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Template:Amtrak lines
Template:Amtrak lines
Template:Amtrak lines
Template:Amtrak lines
Template:Amtrak lines
Template:Amtrak lines
Template:Amtrak lines
LIRR
TerminusTemplate:LIRR lines
Template:LIRR lines
NJT
Template:NJT linesTerminus
Template:NJT lines
Template:NJT lines
Template:NJT lines
Template:NJT lines
  Former services  
PRR
Template:PRR linesTerminus
Template:PRR lines

Pennsylvania Station — known as New York Penn Station or just Penn Station — is a major intercity train station and commuter rail hub in New York City. Serving 430,000 passengers a day [4] (compared to 700,000 across town at Grand Central Terminal)[5] at a rate of up to a thousand every 90 seconds,[6] it is one of the busiest passenger transportation facilities in the United States[7] and in North America.[8][9]

The station is located in the underground levels of Pennsylvania Plaza, an urban complex between Seventh Avenue and Eighth Avenue and between 31st and 33rd Streets in Midtown Manhattan. It is located underneath Madison Square Garden and lies in proximity to other Manhattan landmarks, including the Empire State Building, Koreatown, and Macy's at Herald Square.

Penn Station is at the center of the Northeast Corridor, an electrified passenger rail line extending southward from the New York metropolitan area to Philadelphia and Washington, D.C. and northward to Boston. Intercity trains are operated by Amtrak which owns the entire station, while commuter rail services are operated by the Long Island Rail Road and New Jersey Transit. The station has twenty-one tracks fed by six tunnels.[10]

Penn Station saw 8.4 million Amtrak passenger arrivals and departures in 2010, about double the traffic at the next busiest station, Union Station in Washington, D.C.[11] Penn Station's assigned IATA airport code is ZYP.[12] Its Amtrak and NJ Transit station code is NYP.

Connections are available within the complex to two stations of the New York City Subway, and to many bus services at street level. The two subway stations are at opposite ends of the complex (Eighth Avenue Line & Seventh Avenue Line) and otherwise unconnected.

Services

Inter-city rail

Amtrak

Main article: Amtrak

Amtrak owns the station and uses it for the following services:

  • Acela Express to Boston, Providence, Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Washington
  • Adirondack to Montréal
  • Cardinal to Philadelphia, Washington, Cincinnati, and Chicago
  • Carolinian to Philadelphia, Washington, Richmond, Raleigh, and Charlotte
  • Crescent to Philadelphia, Washington, Greensboro, Atlanta, and New Orleans
  • Empire Service to Yonkers, Croton-Harmon, Poughkeepsie, Rhinecliff, Hudson, Albany, Schenectady, Amsterdam, Utica, Rome, Syracuse, Rochester, Buffalo, and Niagara Falls
  • Ethan Allen Express to Albany and Rutland
  • Keystone Service to Philadelphia, Lancaster, and Harrisburg
  • Lake Shore Limited to Albany, Syracuse, Rochester, Buffalo, Cleveland, Toledo, and Chicago
  • Maple Leaf to Albany, Syracuse, Rochester, Buffalo, and Toronto
  • Pennsylvanian to Philadelphia, Harrisburg, and Pittsburgh
  • Northeast Regional to Boston, Providence, New Haven, Trenton, Philadelphia, Wilmington, Baltimore, Washington, Richmond, and Newport News
  • Palmetto, Silver Meteor and Silver Star to Philadelphia, Washington, Columbia, Savannah, Jacksonville, Tampa, and Miami
  • Vermonter to New Haven, Hartford, Springfield, and St. Albans

Despite its status as the busiest train station for Amtrak, Pennsylvania Station does not have adequate clearance for its Superliner railcars.

Amtrak normally uses tracks 5–16 alongside New Jersey Transit as well as the LIRR for 13–16.

Commuter rail

Long Island Rail Road

Main article: Long Island Rail Road

All branches connect at Jamaica station except the Port Washington Branch.

Normally, the LIRR uses tracks 17–21 exclusively and shares 13–16 with Amtrak and NJT.

New Jersey Transit

Main article: New Jersey Transit Rail Operations

Passengers can transfer at Secaucus Junction to Main Line, Bergen County Line, Port Jervis Line, and Pascack Valley Line trains, as well as Meadowlands Rail Line event service.

Passengers can transfer at Newark (Penn Station) to Raritan Valley Line trains.

The first Dual-Powered(Diesel & Electric) train arrived on March 8, 2013 from the Montclair-Boonton Line because of electrical work happening on the line.

NJT normally has the exclusive use of tracks 1–4, and shares tracks 5–16 with Amtrak and tracks 13–16 with the LIRR as well.

Rapid transit

New York City Subway

Further information: New York City Subway

PATH

Further information: Port Authority Trans-Hudson

Bus and coach

New York City Bus

Further information: MTA Regional Bus Operations

BoltBus

BoltBus is a discount bus company owned and operated through a 50/50 partnership between Greyhound and Peter Pan bus lines. They operate intercity bus service from two stops at Pennsylvania Station (New York City).

Penn Station Bus Stop #1 (West 33rd Street and 7th Avenue)

  • Service to Penn Station, Baltimore, Maryland
  • Service to Greenbelt Metrorail Intermodal Station, Greenbelt, Maryland
  • Service to Union Station, Washington, D.C.
  • Service to 10th Street and H Street NW, Washington, D.C.

Penn Station Bus Stop #2 (West 34th Street and 8th Avenue)

  • Service to South Station (Gate #9), Boston, Massachusetts
  • Service to Cherry Hill Mall, Cherry Hill, New Jersey
  • Service to 30th Street Station, 30th Street between Market & Chestnut Streets, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Vamoose Bus

Vamoose Bus is a privately owned company providing transportation from their stop one block from Penn Station to the Washington DC area.

Penn Station bus stop (West 30th Street and 7th Avenue)

United Airlines

Penn Station includes a United Airlines ticketing office, located at the ticket lobby.[13] This was previously a Continental Airlines ticketing office.[14]

Station layout

Station layout[15]
Above ground Madison Square Garden
G Street Level Exit/Entrance
UC Amtrak Concourse Amtrak tickets, transfer to 34th Street – Penn Station (IND Eighth Avenue Line) station; exit to 33rd Street, connection to Exit and Connecting concourses
NJT Concourse NJT tickets, exit to 31st Street, connect to LIRR and Hilton concourses
LC West End Concourse Amtrak/LIRR tickets, transfer to 34th Street – Penn Station (IND Eighth Avenue Line) station; exit to 33rd Street, connection to Exit and Connecting concourses
Exit Concourse Exit to 31st Street, connection to Hilton, West End, and Connecting concourses
Hilton Corridor Exit to Seventh Avenue, connection to Exit, LIRR, Central, and NJT concourses
Central Concourse Tickets, connection to Connecting and Hilton concourses
Connecting Concourse Transfer to 34th Street – Penn Station (IRT Broadway – Seventh Avenue Line) station, connection to West End, LIRR, Central, and Exit concourses, to One Penn Plaza and 34th Street at north end
LIRR Concourse LIRR tickets, connect to NJT and Hilton concourses
P
Platform level 		Track 21 → LIRR →
Island platform (Platform K)
Track 20 → LIRR →
Track 19 → LIRR →
Island platform (Platform J)
Track 18 → LIRR →
Island platform (Platform I)
Track 17 → LIRR →
Track 16 ← Amtrak/LIRR →
Island platform (Platform H)
Track 15 ← Amtrak/LIRR →
Track 14 ← Amtrak/LIRR →
Island platform (Platform G)
Track 13 ← Amtrak/LIRR →
Track 12 ← Amtrak/New Jersey Transit →
Island platform (Platform F)
Track 11 ← Amtrak/New Jersey Transit →
Track 10 ← Amtrak/New Jersey Transit →
Island platform (Platform E)
Track 9 ← Amtrak/New Jersey Transit →
Track 8 ← Amtrak via Empire Connection/New Jersey Transit →
Island platform (Platform D)
Track 7 ← Amtrak via Empire Connection/New Jersey Transit →
Track 6 ← Amtrak via Empire Connection/New Jersey Transit →
Island platform (Platform C)
Track 5 ← Amtrak via Empire Connection/New Jersey Transit →
Track 4 ← New Jersey Transit
Island platform (Platform B)
Track 3 ← New Jersey Transit
Track 2 ← New Jersey Transit
Island platform (Platform A)
Track 1 ← New Jersey Transit
  • Notes:
    • Tracks 1-4 end at bumper blocks at the eastern end of the platform.
    • Due to the narrowness of platform I, trains on Track 18 will not open their doors on that platform.

History

Pennsylvania Station is named for the Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR), its builder and original tenant, and shares its name with several stations in other cities. The current facility is the substantially remodeled underground remnant of a much grander structure designed by McKim, Mead, and White and completed in 1910. The original Pennsylvania Station was considered a masterpiece of the Beaux-Arts style and one of the architectural jewels of New York City. Demolition of the original head house and train shed began in 1963. The Pennsylvania Plaza complex, including the fourth and current Madison Square Garden, was completed in 1968.

Planning and construction

Main article: New York Tunnel Extension
LIRR sign at Penn Station

Until the early 20th century, the PRR's rail network terminated on the western side of the Hudson River (once known locally as the North River) at Exchange Place in Jersey City, New Jersey. Manhattan-bound passengers boarded ferries to cross the Hudson River for the final stretch of their journey. The rival New York Central Railroad's line ran down Manhattan from the north under Park Avenue and terminated at Grand Central Terminal at 42nd St.

The Pennsylvania Railroad considered building a rail bridge across the Hudson, but the state[which?] required such a bridge to be a joint project with other New Jersey railroads, who were not interested.[16][17] The alternative was to tunnel under the river, but steam locomotives could not use such a tunnel due to the accumulation of pollution in a closed space; in any case the New York State Legislature had prohibited steam locomotives in Manhattan after July 1, 1908.[18] The development of the electric locomotive at the turn of the 20th century made a tunnel feasible. On December 12, 1901 PRR president Alexander Cassatt announced the railroad's plan to enter New York City by tunneling under the Hudson and building a grand station on the West Side of Manhattan south of 34th Street.

Beginning in June 1903 the North River Tunnels, two single-track tunnels, were bored from the west under the Hudson River and four single-track tunnels were bored from the east under the East River. This second set of tunnels linked the new station to Queens and the Long Island Rail Road, which came under PRR control (see East River Tunnels), and Sunnyside Yard in Queens, where trains would be maintained and assembled. Electrification was initially 600 volts DC–third rail, later changed to 11,000 volts AC–overhead catenary, when electrification of PRR's mainline was eventually extended to Washington, D.C. in the early 1930s.[16]

The tunnel technology was so innovative that in 1907 the PRR shipped an actual 23-foot (7.0 m) diameter section of the new East River Tunnels to the Jamestown Exposition in Norfolk, Virginia, to celebrate the 300th anniversary of the nearby founding of the colony at Jamestown. The same tube, with an inscription indicating that it had been displayed at the Exposition, was later installed under water and remains in use today. Construction was completed on the Hudson River tunnels on October 9, 1906, and on the East River tunnels March 18, 1908. Meanwhile, ground was broken for Pennsylvania Station on May 1, 1904. By the time of its completion and the inauguration of regular through train service on Sunday, November 27, 1910, the total project cost to the Pennsylvania Railroad for the station and associated tunnels was $114 million (approximately $2.7 billion in 2011 dollars), according to an Interstate Commerce Commission report.[19]: 156–7 

The railroad paid tribute to Cassatt, who did not live to see the completion of his great edifice:

Alexander Johnston Cassatt

President, Pennsylvania Railroad Company 1899–1906
Whose Foresight, Courage and Ability achieved the extension of the Pennsylvania Railroad into New York City

    —Inscription on statue of Alexander Cassatt in Pennsylvania Station (1910)[16]
View from the northeast, c. 1911. The structure stood out among the other buildings in the area. Most of the buildings in the scene are no longer standing, and have been replaced with taller buildings and skyscrapers.

Occupying two city blocks from Seventh Avenue to Eighth Avenue and from 31st to 33rd Streets, the Pennsylvania Station building was 784 by 430 feet, covering an area of 8 acres (3.2 ha). It was one of the first rail terminals to separate arriving from departing passengers on two concourses.[19]: 151 

Original structure (1910–1963)

Main article: Pennsylvania Station (1910)

The original structure was made of pink granite and marked by an imposing, sober colonnade of Roman unfluted version of classical Greek Doric columns. The colonnades embodied the sophisticated integration of multiple functions and circulation of people and goods. McKim, Mead & White's Pennsylvania Station combined glass-and-steel train sheds and a magnificently proportioned concourse with a breathtaking monumental entrance to New York City. From the street twin carriageways, modelled after Berlin's Brandenburg Gate, led to the two railroads the building served, the Pennsylvania and the Long Island Rail Road. The main waiting room, inspired by the Roman Baths of Caracalla, approximated the scale of St. Peter's nave in Rome, expressed here in a steel framework clad in plaster that imitated the lower wall portions of travertine. 150 feet high, it was the largest indoor space in New York City and one of the largest public spaces in the world. The Baltimore Sun said in April 2007 that the station was “as grand a corporate statement in stone, glass and sculpture as one could imagine.”[20] Historian Jill Jonnes called the original edifice a “great Doric temple to transportation.”[21]

Concourse of Penn Station c. 1935.

During half a century of operation under Pennsylvania Railroad (1910–1963) scores of intercity passenger trains arrived and departed daily to Chicago and St. Louis on “Pennsy” rails and beyond on connecting railroads to Miami and the west. Along with Long Island Rail Road trains Penn Station saw trains of the New Haven and the Lehigh Valley Railroads. During World War I and the early 1920s rival Baltimore and Ohio Railroad passenger trains to Washington, Chicago, and St. Louis also used Penn Station, initially by order of the United States Railroad Administration, until the Pennsylvania Railroad terminated the B&O's access in 1926.[22] The station saw its heaviest use during World War II but by the late-1950s intercity rail passenger volumes had declined dramatically with the coming of the Jet Age and the Interstate Highway System.

The concourse in 1962. In 1963-64, the vaulted skylights and outer walls were demolished, and the concourse was renovated into its present configuration.

The Pennsylvania Railroad optioned the air rights of Penn Station in the 1950s. The option called for the demolition of the head-house and train shed, to be replaced by an office complex and a new sports complex. The tracks of the station, perhaps fifty feet below street level, would remain untouched.[23] Demolition began in October 1963. Plans for the new Penn Plaza and Madison Square Garden were announced in 1962. In exchange for the air-rights to Penn Station, the Pennsylvania Railroad would get a brand-new, air-conditioned, smaller station completely below street level at no cost, and a 25% stake in the new Madison Square Garden Complex.

The demolition of the head house—although considered by some to be justified as progressive at a time of declining rail passenger service—created international outrage.[20] As dismantling of the structure began, The New York Times editorially lamented, "Until the first blow fell, no one was convinced that Penn Station really would be demolished, or that New York would permit this monumental act of vandalism against one of the largest and finest landmarks of its age of Roman elegance."[24]

Its destruction left a lasting wound in the architectural consciousness of the city. A famous photograph by Eddie Hausner of the ruined sculpture "Day" by Adolph Alexander Weinman in a landfill of the New Jersey Meadowlands struck a guilty chord. Pennsylvania Station's demolition is considered the catalyst for the enactment of the city's first architectural preservation statutes. One of the sculpted clock surrounds, whose figures were based on model Audrey Munson, still survives as the Eagle Scout Memorial Fountain in Kansas City, Missouri. Another clock sculpture, "Night", is in the sculpture garden at the Brooklyn Museum, and 14 of the 22 original eagle ornaments still exist.[25] Ottawa's Union Station, built in 1912, a year after Penn Station, is another replica of the Baths of Caracalla; its departure hall now provides an idea of what the interior of Penn Station looked like (at half the scale). Chicago Union Station is also based on the design of these earlier structures.

Demolition of station building

Original eagle now in Ringwood, NJ

After a renovation covered some of the grand columns with plastic and blocked off the spacious central hallway with a new ticket office, author Lewis Mumford wrote critically in The New Yorker in 1958 that “nothing further that could be done to the station could damage it.” History was to prove him wrong. Under the presidency of Pennsylvania Railroad's Stuart T. Saunders (who later headed ill-fated Penn Central Transportation), demolition of the above-ground station house began in October 1963. As most of the rail infrastructure was below street level, including the waiting room, concourses, and boarding platforms, rail service was maintained throughout demolition with only minor disruptions. Madison Square Garden, along with two office towers were built above the extensively renovated concourses and waiting area (the tracks and boarding platforms were not modified at this time).[26] A 1968 advertisement depicted architect Charles Luckman's model of the final plan for the Madison Square Garden Center complex.[27]

A point made in the defense of the demolition of the old Penn Station at the time was that the cost of maintaining the old structure had become prohibitive. The question of whether it made sense to preserve a building, intended to be a cost-effective and functional piece of the city's infrastructure, simply as a monument to the past was raised in defense of the plans to demolish it. As a New York Times editorial critical of the demolition noted at the time, a "city gets what it wants, is willing to pay for, and ultimately deserves."[24] Modern architects rushed to save the ornate building, although it was contrary to their own styles. They called the station a treasure and chanted "Don't Amputate – Renovate" at rallies.[28]

Only three eagles salvaged from the station are known to remain in New York City: two in front of the Penn Plaza / Madison Square Garden complex, and one at The Cooper Union, Weinman's alma mater. Cooper's eagle had been located in the courtyard of the Albert Nerken School of Engineering at 51 Astor Place,[29] but was relocated in the summer of 2009, along with the engineering school, to a new academic building at 41 Cooper Square. This eagle is no longer viewable from the street, as it is located on the building's green roof.[30] Three are on Long Island: two at the United States Merchant Marine Academy in Kings Point and one at the Long Island Rail Road station in Hicksville, New York. Four reside on the Market Street Bridge in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, across from that city's 30th Street Station. One is positioned near the end zone at the football field of Hampden-Sydney College near Farmville, Virginia. Yet another is located on the grounds of the National Zoo in Washington, D.C.

The controversy over the demolition of such a well-known landmark, and its replacement by what continues to be widely[by whom?] deplored, are often cited as catalysts for the architectural preservation movement in the United States. New laws were passed to restrict such demolition. Within the decade, Grand Central Terminal was protected under the city's new landmarks preservation act, a protection upheld by the courts in 1978 after a challenge by Grand Central's owner, Penn Central Transportation.

The outcry over the loss of Penn Station prompted activists to question the “development scheme” mentality cultivated by New York's “master builder”, Robert Moses. Public protests and a rejection of his plan by the city government meant an end to Moses's plans for a Lower Manhattan Expressway.

In the longer run, the sense that something irreplaceable had been lost contributed to the erosion of confidence in Modernism itself and its sweeping forms of urban renewal. Interest in historic preservation was strengthened. Comparing the new and the old Penn Station, renowned Yale architectural historian Vincent Scully once wrote, “One entered the city like a god; one scuttles in now like a rat.” This feeling, shared by many New Yorkers, has led to movements for a new Penn Station that could somehow atone for the loss of an architectural treasure.[31]

Current structure (1968–present day)

The Long Island Rail Road's concourse
New Jersey Transit's concourse
Amtrak's concourse

The current Penn Station is situated completely underground and is located underneath Madison Square Garden, 33rd Street, and Two Penn Plaza. The station spans three levels underground with the concourses located on the upper two levels with the train platforms located on the lowest level. The two levels of concourses, while original to the 1910 station, were extensively renovated during the construction of Madison Square Garden, and expanded in subsequent decades.[26] The tracks and platforms are also largely original, except for some work connecting the station to the West Side Rail Yard and the Amtrak Empire Corridor serving Albany and Buffalo, New York.[32][33]

Unlike most train stations, Penn Station does not have a unified design or floor plan but rather is divided into separate Amtrak, Long Island Rail Road and New Jersey Transit concourses with each concourse maintained and styled differently by its respective operator. Amtrak and NJ Transit concourses are located on the first level below the street-level while the Long Island Rail Road concourse is two levels below street-level. The NJ Transit concourse near Seventh Avenue is the newest and opened in 2002 out of existing retail and Amtrak backoffice space.[34][35] A new entrance to this concourse from West 31st Street opened in September 2009.[36] Previously, NJ Transit shared space with the Amtrak concourse. The main LIRR concourse runs below West 33rd Street between Seventh and Eighth Avenues. Significant renovations were made to this concourse over a three-year period ending in 1994, including the addition of a new entry pavilion on 34th street.[37] The LIRR's West End Concourse, west of Eighth Avenue, opened in 1986.[38] The Amtrak concourse, the largest in the station and originally built for the Pennsylvania Railroad maintain the original 1960s styling and have not been renovated since the new Penn Station was built.

Tracks 1–4 are used by NJ Transit, and tracks 5–12 are used by Amtrak and NJ Transit trains. The LIRR has the exclusive use of tracks 17–21 on the north side of the station and shares tracks 13–16 with Amtrak and NJ Transit.

As of April 3, 2011 the public timetables show 212 weekday LIRR departures, 164 weekday NJ Transit departures, 51 Amtrak departures west to New Jersey and beyond (plus the triweekly Cardinal), 13 Amtrak departures north up the Hudson, and 21 Amtrak departures eastward.

In the 1990s, the current Pennsylvania Station was renovated by Amtrak, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, and New Jersey Transit, to improve the appearance of the waiting and concession areas, sharpen the station information systems (audio and visual) and remove much of the grime. Recalling the erstwhile grandeur of the bygone Penn Station, an old four-sided clock from the original depot was installed at the 34th Street Long Island Rail Road entrance. The walkway from that entrance's escalator also has a mural depicting elements of the old Penn Station's architecture.

After the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, passenger flow through the Penn Station Complex was curtailed. The taxiway under Madison Square Garden, which ran from 31st Street north to 33rd Street half way between 7th and 8th Avenues, was closed off with concrete Jersey barriers. A covered walkway from the taxiway was constructed to guide arriving passengers to a new taxi-stand on 31st Street.

Despite the improvements, Penn Station continues to be criticized as a low-ceilinged "catacomb" lacking charm, especially when compared to New York's much larger and ornate Grand Central Terminal.[20] The New York Times, in a November 2007 editorial supporting development of an enlarged railroad terminal, said that "Amtrak's beleaguered customers...now scurry through underground rooms bereft of light or character."[39] Times transit reporter Michael M. Grynbaum later called Penn Station "the ugly stepchild of the city’s two great rail terminals."[40]

ClubAcela Lounge

ClubAcela is a private lounge located on the Amtrak concourse (8th Avenue side of the station). Prior to December 2000 it was known as the Metropolitan Lounge. Guests are provided with comfortable seating, complimentary non-alcoholic beverages, newspapers, television sets and a conference room. Access to ClubAcela is restricted to the following passenger types:[41]

  • Amtrak Guest Rewards members with a valid Select Plus or Select Executive member card.
  • Amtrak passengers with a same-day ticket (departing) or ticket receipt (arriving) in First class or sleeping car accommodations.
  • Complimentary ClubAcela Single-Day Pass holders.
  • United Airlines United Club Members with a valid card or passengers with a same-day travel ticket on United GlobalFirst or United BusinessFirst.
  • Private rail car owners/lessees. The PNR number must be given to a Club representative upon entry.

Future

Moynihan Station

In the early 1990s, U.S. Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan began to champion a plan to rebuild the historic Penn Station, in which he had shined shoes during the Great Depression.[42] He proposed building it in the James Farley Post Office building, which was designed by the same McKim, Mead & White architectural firm as the original station and happens to occupy a city block across Eighth Avenue from the current Penn Station. After Moynihan's death in 2003, New York Governor George Pataki and Senator Charles Schumer proposed naming the facility "Moynihan Station" in his honor.[43][44]

Proposed designs throughout the development process, from 1999 (left), 2005 (middle), and 2007 (right)

Initial design proposals were laid out by David Childs of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill in 2001.[45] Childs' plan was scrapped for a more modest design by the architectural firms of James Carpenter and Hellmuth, Obata and Kassabaum in 2005[46] until Skidmore, Owings & Merrill reacquired the project later that year.[47] Though plans once consisted of raising the roof of the Farley building to a height comparable to the original Penn Station, the steel trusses of the Farley building are now slated to be preserved as the station's canopy.[48]

Typical of large projects, the concept has undergone multiple delays and iterations since its conception. During the 2000s (decade), Amtrak withdrew from plans to move from the current Penn Station, leaving New Jersey Transit as the Moynihan Station's anchor tenant.[49][50] Support also grew for "Plan B," an expansion of the project's scope, under which Madison Square Garden would have been relocated to the west flank of the Farley Building, allowing Vornado Realty Trust to construct an office complex on the current Garden site.[51] By 2009, the Garden's owner Cablevision had decided not to move Madison Square Garden, but to renovate its current location instead,[52] and Amtrak had returned as a potential tenant.[53]

The secure of $83.4 million of federal stimulus money in February 2010, shovel-ready elements of the plan which were broken off into "Phase 1," which, together with money from other sources, was fully funded at $267 million. This includes two new entrances to the existing Penn Stations platforms through the Farley Building on Eighth Avenue.[54] Groundbreaking of Phase 1 was on October 18, 2010 and completion is expected in 2016.[55][56] Phase 2 will consist of the new train hall in the fully renovated Farley Building. It is expected to cost up to $1.5 billion, the source of which has not yet been identified.[57]

Madison Square Garden is seen by some as an obstacle in the renovation and possible future expansion of Penn Station. On February 15, 2013, Manhattan Community Board 5 voted 36 to 0 against granting a renewal to MSG's operating permit in perpetuity and proposed a 10-year limit instead in order to build a new Penn Station where the arena is currently standing. Manhattan borough president Scott Stringer said, “Moving the arena is an important first step to improving Penn Station.” The Madison Square Garden Company responded, “It is incongruous to think that M.S.G. would be considering moving.”[58] In June 2013, the New York City Council Committee on Land Use voted unanimously to give the Garden a ten year permit, at the end of which period the owners will either have to relocate, or go back through the permission process.[59] On July 24, the City Council voted to give the Garden a ten year operating permit by a vote of 47 to 1. “This is the first step in finding a new home for Madison Square Garden and building a new Penn Station that is as great as New York and suitable for the 21st century,” said City Council speaker Christine Quinn. “This is an opportunity to reimagine and redevelop Penn Station as a world-class transportation destination.”[60]

  • Pennsylvania Station in the 21st century
  • Typical rush hour crowd heading to an LIRR train
    Typical rush hour crowd heading to an LIRR train
  • Platform level
    Platform level
  • New Jersey Transit locomotive at the platform
    New Jersey Transit locomotive at the platform
  • 8th Avenue entrance
    8th Avenue entrance
  • West Side Yard between Penn Station and the Hudson River. The elevated viaduct that wraps around the yard area is a former New York Central freight route known as the "High Line"; it is now a popular multi-use recreational trail.
    West Side Yard between Penn Station and the Hudson River. The elevated viaduct that wraps around the yard area is a former New York Central freight route known as the "High Line"; it is now a popular multi-use recreational trail.
  • LIRR train arriving
    LIRR train arriving
  • One of the last remnants of the original Penn Station; a staircase between tracks 3 and 4.
    One of the last remnants of the original Penn Station; a staircase between tracks 3 and 4.
  • Amtrak's concourse
    Amtrak's concourse
  • Amtrak departure board
    Amtrak departure board
  • The Long Island Rail Road concourse
    The Long Island Rail Road concourse
  • Looking west from Ninth Ave. Counting from the left, the fourth track leads to the Empire Service tunnel that turns northward, 6 to 11 converge into the North River Tunnels, and 12 to 15 carry LIRR trains to West Side Yard. This is the only portion of the Penn Station track layout that is open to the sky.
    Looking west from Ninth Ave. Counting from the left, the fourth track leads to the Empire Service tunnel that turns northward, 6 to 11 converge into the North River Tunnels, and 12 to 15 carry LIRR trains to West Side Yard. This is the only portion of the Penn Station track layout that is open to the sky.

See also

References

Notes

  1. ^ "QUARTERLY RIDERSHIP TRENDS ANALYSIS". New Jersey Transit. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 27, 2012. Retrieved January 4, 2013.
  2. ^ "Amtrak Fact Sheet, FY2013, State of New York" (PDF). Amtrak. November 2013. Retrieved December 3, 2013.
  3. ^ Average weekday, 2010 LIRR Annual Ridership and Marketing Report
  4. ^ Real Transit. Real Transit. Retrieved on 2013-12-06.
  5. ^ Grand Central Terminal New York City Review | Fodor's. Fodors.com. Retrieved on 2013-12-06.
  6. ^ Jackson, Kenneth T., ed. Encyclopedia of New York City, pp. 498 and 891.
  7. ^ Empire State Development. "About Moynihan Station." Accessed 2011-03-07.
  8. ^ Betts, Mary Beth (1995). "Pennsylvania Station". In Kenneth T. Jackson (ed.). The Encyclopedia of New York City. New Haven, CT & London & New York: Yale University Press & The New-York Historical Society. pp. 890–891.
  9. ^ Grynbaum, Micheal M. (October 18, 2010). "The Joys and Woes of Penn Station at 100". New York Times. Retrieved February 16, 2011. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  10. ^ Frassinelli, Mike (November 24, 2013). "How to squeeze 1,200 trains a day into America's busiest transit hub". The Star-Ledger. Retrieved November 24, 2013.
  11. ^ Amtrak National Facts, Bureau of Transportation Statistics, accessed November 8, 2009. In 2008, Penn Station saw 8,739,345 boardings.
  12. ^ Full list of US Airports Three Letter Codes – N, accessed August 1, 2006
  13. ^ "U.S. and Canada Reservations Contact Information". United Airlines. Retrieved June 11, 2012.
  14. ^ "U.S. & Canada Reservations Contact Information". Continental Airlines. Archived from the original on April 12, 2010. Retrieved June 11, 2011.
  15. ^ http://www.mta.info/lirr/AlternateRoute/PennStation.htm
  16. ^ a b c Donovan, Frank P. Jr. (1949). Railroads of America. Milwaukee: Kalmbach Publishing.
  17. ^ * Keys, C. M. (July 1910). "Cassatt and His Vision: Half a Billion Dollars Spent in Ten Years to Improve a Single Railroad – The End of a Forty-Year Effort to Cross the Hudson". The World's Work: A History of Our Time. XX: 13187–13204. Retrieved July 10, 2009. {{cite journal}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  18. ^ Klein, Aaron E (January 1988). History of the New York Central. Greenwich, Connecticut: Bison Books. p. 128. ISBN 0-517-46085-8.
  19. ^ a b Droege, John A. (1916). Passenger Terminals and Trains. New York: McGraw-Hill. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  20. ^ a b c Rasmussen, Frederick N. (April 21, 2007). "From the Gilded Age, a monument to transit". The Baltimore Sun. {{cite news}}: External link in |title= (help)
  21. ^ Jonnes, Jill (2007). Conquering Gotham: a Gilded Age Epic – The Construction of Penn Station and Its Tunnels. New York: Viking Press. ISBN 978-0-670-03158-0.
  22. ^ Harwood, Herbert H. Jr. (1990). Royal Blue Line. Sykesville, Md.: Greenberg Publishing. ISBN 0-89778-155-4.
  23. ^ The Railway and Engineering Review article says at their highest the station tracks were nine feet below sea level.
  24. ^ a b "Farewell to Penn Station". The New York Times. October 30, 1963. Retrieved July 13, 2010. (The editorial goes on to say that “we will probably be judged not by the monuments we build but by those we have destroyed”).
  25. ^ Lee, Jennifer 8. (September 11, 2009). "New Aerie for a Penn Station Eagle". New York Times City Room Blog. The New York Times. Retrieved December 20, 2010.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  26. ^ a b "New York - Penn Station, NY (NYP)", Great American Stations Project. 2013 Amtrak. Accessed 5 October 2013
  27. ^ nyc-architecture.com. "Madison Square Garden a New International Landmark." 1968 advertisement. New York Architecture Images: Madison Square Garden Center.
  28. ^ Gray, Christopher (May 20, 2001). "'The Destruction of Penn Station'; A 1960's Protest That Tried to Save a Piece of the Past". The New York Times. Retrieved January 16, 2010.
  29. ^ von Meistersinger, Toby (September 4, 2007). "Keep an Eagle Eye Out for Penn Station Eagles". Gothamist. Retrieved January 28, 2010.
  30. ^ "News Briefs: Cooper Union Eagle Takes Flight" (PDF). At Cooper Union (Summer 2009): 4. Retrieved July 29, 2012. {{cite journal}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  31. ^ “That it was torn down in 1963, mindlessly, has been with the city for a long while, how could we do that? We now have an opportunity to recreate the building.”Daniel Patrick Moynihan, Moynihan to Help Recreate NYC Pennsylvania Station, Reuters, August 27, 2002.
  32. ^ Doherty, Matthew (November 7, 2004). "Far West Side Story". The New York Times. Retrieved March 6, 2010.
  33. ^ "Travel Advisory; Grand Central Trains Rerouted To Penn Station". The New York Times. April 7, 1991. Retrieved February 7, 2010.
  34. ^ "Commissioner Fox Unveils New 7th Avenue Concourse at Penn Station N.Y." (Press release). NJ Transit. September 18, 2002. Retrieved January 16, 2010.
  35. ^ Lautenberg, Saundra and Baumann, Lynne M. (2000). "New Jersey Transit's East End Concourse."
  36. ^ Fahim, Kareem (November 6, 2006). "New Penn Station Entrance Is Planned by N.J. Transit". The New York Times. Retrieved July 18, 2009.
  37. ^ Schaer, Sidney C. (October 23, 1994). "As LIRR Renovation Ends, Who's Laughing Now?". Newsday.
  38. ^ Washington, Ruby (December 12, 1986). "New Concourse Opens at Pennsylvania Station". The New York Times. Retrieved July 18, 2009.
  39. ^ "A Station Worthy of New York". The New York Times. November 2, 2007. Retrieved November 26, 2007.
  40. ^ "The Joys and Woes of Penn Station at 100". The New York Times. October 18, 2010. Retrieved February 3, 2013.
  41. ^ Amtrak ClubAcela access eligibility and rules Retrieved 11 April 22:45 GMT
  42. ^ Friends of Moynihan Station. Moynihanstation.org (2006-07-01). Retrieved on 2013-07-26.
  43. ^ Bagli, Charles V. (July 18, 2005). "Team Chosen for Project to Develop Transit Hub". The New York Times. Retrieved January 16, 2010.
  44. ^ The New Penn Station: When Will It Arrive?, accessed June 11, 2006
  45. ^ Moynihan Station Redevelopment 2001 Design | SOM | Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP. SOM. Retrieved on 2013-07-26.
  46. ^ http://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/26/nyregion/26blocks.html
  47. ^ Moynihan Station Redevelopment 2007 Design | SOM | Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP. SOM (2010-03-19). Retrieved on 2013-07-26.
  48. ^ Inside the Retro-Futuristic Moynihan Station: Newest Plans Are a Throwback to the Old Post Office. Observer (2012-07-10). Retrieved on 2013-07-26.
  49. ^ "Moynihan Station Development Corporation and NJ Transit Agree to Partner in Moynihan Station" (Press release). Empire State Development Corporation. November 21, 2005. Retrieved January 16, 2010.
  50. ^ Magnet, Alec (November 22, 2005). "New Jersey Transit To Be Anchor Rail Tenant of Proposed Station". New York Sun. Retrieved January 16, 2010.
  51. ^ Corley, Colleen (February 15, 2006). "Online High Expectations for Madison Square Garden's Rumored $750M Move". Commercial Property News. Retrieved January 16, 2010. [dead link‍]
  52. ^ Bagli, Charles V. (April 4, 2009). "Garden Unfurls Its Plan for a Major Renovation". The New York Times. Retrieved January 16, 2010.
  53. ^ Friends of Moynihan Station. Moynihanstation.org (2005-08-30). Retrieved on 2013-07-26.
  54. ^ Michaelson, Juliette (February 16, 2010). "Moynihan Station Awarded Federal Grant" (PDF). Friends of Moynihan Station. Retrieved February 17, 2010.
  55. ^ "New York Penn Station expansion to finally see light of day". Trains. October 18, 2010. Retrieved October 20, 2010.
  56. ^ "Work to begin on massive Penn Station expansion". Long Island Business News. Associated Press. May 9, 2012. Retrieved May 9, 2012.
  57. ^ Friends of Moynihan Station. Moynihanstation.org (2005-08-24). Retrieved on 2013-07-26.
  58. ^ Dunlap, David (April 9, 2013). "Madison Square Garden Says It Will Not Be Uprooted From Penn Station". New York Times. Retrieved April 10, 2013. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  59. ^ Randolph, Eleanor (June 2013). "Bit by Bit, Evicting Madison Square Garden". New York Times. Retrieved July 8, 2013. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  60. ^ Bagli, Charles (July 24, 2013). "Madison Square Garden Is Told to Move". New York Times. Retrieved July 25, 2013. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)

Bibliography

  • Diehl, Lorraine B. (1985). The Late, Great Pennsylvania Station. Lexington, MA: Stephen Greene Press. ISBN 0-8289-0603-3. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  • Johnston, Bob (January 2010). "Penn Station: How do they do it?". Trains. 70 (1): 22–29. Includes track diagram.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Pennsylvania Station (New York City).

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