New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has lofty plans for Penn Station. Described as one of the busiest transit hubs in the Western Hemisphere, Penn Station is a major destination for passengers that ride NJ Transit, Amtrak, and the Long Island Rail Road. Cuomo’s grand vision — dubbed the Empire Station Complex — involves bringing in more natural light, adding a ton of retail space, adding new entrances, and removing the Madison Square Garden Theater, among other things. Although NJ Transit operates a lot of trains out of Penn Station, it’s considered a tenant of Amtrak and wouldn’t have a major role in the new entity, which will be led by Amtrak, the MTA, the Long Island Railroad, and the Empire State Development Corporation.
Overall, the $3 billion project is meant to improve passenger flow and make it easier to move around the crowded station. Or as Curbed puts it, to make Penn Station a little less hellish.
Although Gov. Cuomo didn’t detail who’d pay the bill for the new hub, he said $325 million would come from government sources. The rest of the financial plan is expected to be revealed at next week’s State of the State speech. You can check out the official renderings below. —WSJ
(Images: Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s Office)
