The $300 million Penn Station West End Concourse, $1.6 billion Moynihan Train Hall and now $600 million new 33rd Street entrance, plus widening of the connecting 7th Avenue to 8th Avenue concourse may improve pedestrian circulation access, but fail in other critical areas which would provide real vs. cosmetic improvements for LIRR riders. 

All three of these investments costing over $2.5 billion add no additional platform and track capacity for LIRR, New Jersey Transit or Amtrak riders.  All fail to deal with bringing the more than 110-year-old East River Tunnels, two of which suffered significant damage from 2012 Super Storm Sandy, up to a state of good repair.  They do nothing to end the periodic cancellation and combination of LIRR trains due to signal, power, derailments and other East River tunnel problems.

Gov. Mario Cuomo is clearly unaware of the original $200 million Penn Station Improvement project in the early 1990s. Funding was provided by the U.S. Department of Transportation Urban Mass Transportation Administration (today’s Federal Transit Administration).  These funds were used to upgrade the 7th Avenue ticket office, open a new entrance on 34th Street just west of 7th Avenue and renovate the main concourse connecting 7th and 8th avenues. Work was completed in 1994.  

All FTA capital improvements have a useful life requirement contained in the master grant agreements with the MTA.  Failure to do so could result in the FTA requesting reimbursement by the MTA based upon straight line depreciation for the remaining value, which was never achieved.  Cuomo wants to widen the corridor 27 feet plus raise the ceiling by several feet.  Sounds great, but remember that the useful life for similar prior investments to both the corridor and ceiling went into beneficial use in 1994.  They would only be 26 years old in 2020. The MTA could be on the hook for reimbursing FTA millions.  

Also missing is a key, low-cost option that could be of real benefit for tens of thousands of riders.  Until the early 1980s, both LIRR and New Jersey Transit riders exiting east at Penn Station had a direct underground passageway known as the Hilton Corridor. It was also known as the Gimbel’s passageway. Gimbel’s was Macy’s chief competitor at Herald Square. This provided a simple indoor connection to the 34th Street Herald Square IND and BMT subway, along with Port Authority Trans Hudson (PATH) station complex.

Further, there was an underground passageway along 6th Avenue, which went as far north as 42nd Street. As a teenager, I remember avoiding the rain and snow by using this indoor path. It would provide easy access to both the New York Public Library main branch and Stern’s 42nd Street department store.

Both passageways were closed many decades ago by NYC Transit and the LIRR, due to security issues. If reopened today, commuters would have easy connections to the Broadway N, R, Q & W and 6th Avenue B, D, F & M subway lines, along with the PATH system, rather than walking outside on the street exposed to both inclement weather and heavy traffic.  By using either the subway or walking, riders would have direct East Side Midtown access via these subway lines to Manhattan Midtown and the East Side, along with the Broadway, 6th Avenue, 42nd, 53rd, 59th or 63rd Street corridors, served by numerous subway lines and stations.   

It could be rebuilt in several years for $150 million vs. $11.2 billion plus $600 million in financing costs (perhaps up to $12 billion based upon the amended 2016 Federal Transit Administration Full Funding Grant Agreement with the MTA) for MTA LIRR Eastside Access to Grand Central Terminal. Reopening this passageway would provide improved access to Midtown East several years prior to MTA LIRR Eastside Access. Current project schedule calls for service to begin in December 2022 (new FFGA date). Don’t be surprised when MTA announces yet another round of delays and new recovery schedule. This could result in LIRR service to Grand Central Terminal starting in 2023 or later.

Larry Penner

(Larry Penner is a transportation historian, writer and advocate who previously worked 31 years for the United States Department of Transportation Federal Transit Administration Region 2 New York Office. This included the development, review, approval and oversight for billions in capital projects and programs for the MTA, NYC Transit, Long Island Rail Road, Metro North Rail Road and MTA Bus along with 30 other transit agencies in NY & NJ).