MTA Board member: LIRR riders need smooth service during Penn Station overhaul
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority must continue to play a role in the overhaul of Penn Station to ensure Long Island Rail Road service is not disrupted, despite the Trump administration's move Thursday transitioning the project to Amtrak, Suffolk County's MTA board member told Newsday.
Marc Herbst said Friday the MTA was not informed in advance that Amtrak would take over the project. He added that remarks from U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy disparaging the agency's past redevelopment efforts were "not productive" and indicated that politics played a role in the decision.
Duffy on Thursday announced the long-awaited $7 billion renovation and potential expansion of Penn Station would be taken out of the hands of the MTA and given to Amtrak, which owns the 114-year-old transit hub, saving taxpayers approximately $120 million. In his remarks, Duffy cited "MTA’s history of inefficiency, waste and mismanagement."
Herbst, who also serves as executive director of the Long Island Contractors' Association, said, "If Amtrak wants to run it they have every right to do that." But "making disparaging remarks about the program delivery of the MTA is disingenuous."
Herbst said his concern is for the more than 200,000 daily LIRR riders during the Penn Station renovation and wondered how Amtrak is going to "make sure the trains run on-time during construction."
Samuel Chu, a gubernatorial agency appointee from Long Island, agreed and said the "characterization of the MTA as wasteful and inefficient is largely old news." Chu added that the MTA "should be consulted on any design plan going forward."
David Mack, Nassau County's MTA Board member, did not respond to requests for comment.
Amtrak, which also did not respond to requests for comment, has previously been pushing a plan to expand Penn Station, potentially by acquiring the block south of it and building new tracks underground. All of Amtrak's board members were appointed by President Donald Trump's predecessor Joe Biden.
It remains unclear how the Trump administration and Amtrak envision a new Penn Station or which, if any, of several competing ideas for a station overhaul it would support.
There are a number of proposals to renovate Penn Station, which has been criticized for being cramped and dingy, with one of the primary goals being to dramatically increase space inside the station. Some of the plans include moving Madison Square Garden or removing The Theater at Madison Square Garden. Garden officials did not respond to requests for comment Friday.
Samuel Turvey, chairperson of RethinkNYC, a transportation and land use advocacy group that has advocated for the relocation of MSG so Penn Station could be restored to its original 1963 design, said he's hopeful the change will lead to a better outcome for the nation's largest transit hub.
"This will provide tremendous benefits to Long Island," Turvey said of the proposal he backs. He called it "the most important land use decision in this century."
Turvey said Friday he believes Amtrak may lean toward adopting a $6 billion eight-year Penn Station renovation proposal offered by Italian firm ASTM that involves knocking down the 5,600-seat Theater at Madison Square Garden and replacing it with a five-story, brightly lit, glass-covered train hall on Eighth Avenue.
Removing the theater — which ASTM has said they have an agreement in principle to purchase for less than $500 million — would not only provide additional space for Penn Station travelers, but for MSG’s truck-loading operation, which is known to tie up traffic near the Garden. The plan does not require the demolition or relocation of Madison Square Garden.
"I think that it's likely that Madison Square Garden stays where it is," Turvey said, citing the high cost to get MSG owner James Dolan to sell and relocate the arena. "So I think to dislodge him voluntarily or otherwise is a really tall order."
ASTM officials did not respond to requests for comment Friday.
Meanwhile, Alexandros Washburn, the chief architect of a competing proposal by a group called the Grand Penn Community Alliance, told Newsday Friday that having a single point of leadership in Amtrak should help the project move forward smoother and with fewer disagreements.
Washburn's plan calls for the Garden be relocated across the street and Penn Station to be brought above ground with a bigger, more well-lit building and an adjacent park.
The proposed commuter hall, on the concourse level upstairs from the train tracks and platforms, is based on the original Penn Station and would be connected to Moynihan Train Hall through a platform-level walkway.
"We'll have the complete package," Washburn said. "A concourse, which is where you board the train, that will be the biggest in the world. Every train from every track will be able to rise up and get down to directly. No more of those snaking long lines to get up and down. So everything changes."
The project is forecast to cost roughly $7 billion and take 11 years to complete.
Penn Station commuters Friday had mixed opinions about the Trump administration taking over the project.
"Whatever’s gonna save the taxpayers more money," said Paul San Pietro, 59, a carpenter from Mastic Beach.
His wife, Julia San Pietro, 55, a Verizon customer service representative, added: "Whatever doesn’t come out of our pocket."
But Earl Cameron, a carpenter from Massapequa, said the state has been doing a fine job renovating Penn Station — and Trump should stay away.
"I’m not in agreement with the federal government taking over the renovation of Penn Station," Cameron said. "I know he's gonna want to stick his nose in it; put his name on it. It may be ‘Trump Station’ before you know it, with gold fixtures."
Meanwhile, John Heinze, 62, a Federal Reserve Bank of New York supervisor who was heading from Manhattan, where he lives, to a second home in Remsenburg, is skeptical that either Trump or the MTA would do a very good job.
"I think the MTA has repeatedly proven itself to be incompetent," he said. But he added: "Do I think one is more competent than the other? No."
With Matthew Chayes and Andrew Ehinger
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority must continue to play a role in the overhaul of Penn Station to ensure Long Island Rail Road service is not disrupted, despite the Trump administration's move Thursday transitioning the project to Amtrak, Suffolk County's MTA board member told Newsday.
Marc Herbst said Friday the MTA was not informed in advance that Amtrak would take over the project. He added that remarks from U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy disparaging the agency's past redevelopment efforts were "not productive" and indicated that politics played a role in the decision.
Duffy on Thursday announced the long-awaited $7 billion renovation and potential expansion of Penn Station would be taken out of the hands of the MTA and given to Amtrak, which owns the 114-year-old transit hub, saving taxpayers approximately $120 million. In his remarks, Duffy cited "MTA’s history of inefficiency, waste and mismanagement."
Herbst, who also serves as executive director of the Long Island Contractors' Association, said, "If Amtrak wants to run it they have every right to do that." But "making disparaging remarks about the program delivery of the MTA is disingenuous."
WHAT NEWSDAY FOUND
- Suffolk County's MTA board member said the MTA must continue to play a role in the overhaul of Penn Station to ensure LIRR service is not disrupted.
- Marc Herbst said the MTA was not informed in advance that Amtrak would take over the project.
- U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy cited the MTA’s "history of inefficiency, waste and mismanagement" in taking the project out of the agency's hands.
Herbst said his concern is for the more than 200,000 daily LIRR riders during the Penn Station renovation and wondered how Amtrak is going to "make sure the trains run on-time during construction."
Samuel Chu, a gubernatorial agency appointee from Long Island, agreed and said the "characterization of the MTA as wasteful and inefficient is largely old news." Chu added that the MTA "should be consulted on any design plan going forward."
David Mack, Nassau County's MTA Board member, did not respond to requests for comment.
Amtrak, which also did not respond to requests for comment, has previously been pushing a plan to expand Penn Station, potentially by acquiring the block south of it and building new tracks underground. All of Amtrak's board members were appointed by President Donald Trump's predecessor Joe Biden.
It remains unclear how the Trump administration and Amtrak envision a new Penn Station or which, if any, of several competing ideas for a station overhaul it would support.
Different proposals
There are a number of proposals to renovate Penn Station, which has been criticized for being cramped and dingy, with one of the primary goals being to dramatically increase space inside the station. Some of the plans include moving Madison Square Garden or removing The Theater at Madison Square Garden. Garden officials did not respond to requests for comment Friday.
Samuel Turvey, chairperson of RethinkNYC, a transportation and land use advocacy group that has advocated for the relocation of MSG so Penn Station could be restored to its original 1963 design, said he's hopeful the change will lead to a better outcome for the nation's largest transit hub.
"This will provide tremendous benefits to Long Island," Turvey said of the proposal he backs. He called it "the most important land use decision in this century."
Turvey said Friday he believes Amtrak may lean toward adopting a $6 billion eight-year Penn Station renovation proposal offered by Italian firm ASTM that involves knocking down the 5,600-seat Theater at Madison Square Garden and replacing it with a five-story, brightly lit, glass-covered train hall on Eighth Avenue.
Developer ASTM's plan involves knocking down the 5,600-seat Theater at Madison Square Garden and replacing it with a train hall on Eighth Avenue. Credit: BerlinRosen
Removing the theater — which ASTM has said they have an agreement in principle to purchase for less than $500 million — would not only provide additional space for Penn Station travelers, but for MSG’s truck-loading operation, which is known to tie up traffic near the Garden. The plan does not require the demolition or relocation of Madison Square Garden.
"I think that it's likely that Madison Square Garden stays where it is," Turvey said, citing the high cost to get MSG owner James Dolan to sell and relocate the arena. "So I think to dislodge him voluntarily or otherwise is a really tall order."
ASTM officials did not respond to requests for comment Friday.
Meanwhile, Alexandros Washburn, the chief architect of a competing proposal by a group called the Grand Penn Community Alliance, told Newsday Friday that having a single point of leadership in Amtrak should help the project move forward smoother and with fewer disagreements.
Washburn's plan calls for the Garden be relocated across the street and Penn Station to be brought above ground with a bigger, more well-lit building and an adjacent park.
The Grand Penn Community Alliance proposal would move Madison Square Garden across the street and Penn Station to be brough aboveground, with an adjacent park.. Credit: /Grand Penn Community Alliance
The proposed commuter hall, on the concourse level upstairs from the train tracks and platforms, is based on the original Penn Station and would be connected to Moynihan Train Hall through a platform-level walkway.
"We'll have the complete package," Washburn said. "A concourse, which is where you board the train, that will be the biggest in the world. Every train from every track will be able to rise up and get down to directly. No more of those snaking long lines to get up and down. So everything changes."
The project is forecast to cost roughly $7 billion and take 11 years to complete.
Rider reaction mixed
Penn Station commuters Friday had mixed opinions about the Trump administration taking over the project.
"Whatever’s gonna save the taxpayers more money," said Paul San Pietro, 59, a carpenter from Mastic Beach.
His wife, Julia San Pietro, 55, a Verizon customer service representative, added: "Whatever doesn’t come out of our pocket."
But Earl Cameron, a carpenter from Massapequa, said the state has been doing a fine job renovating Penn Station — and Trump should stay away.
"I’m not in agreement with the federal government taking over the renovation of Penn Station," Cameron said. "I know he's gonna want to stick his nose in it; put his name on it. It may be ‘Trump Station’ before you know it, with gold fixtures."
Meanwhile, John Heinze, 62, a Federal Reserve Bank of New York supervisor who was heading from Manhattan, where he lives, to a second home in Remsenburg, is skeptical that either Trump or the MTA would do a very good job.
"I think the MTA has repeatedly proven itself to be incompetent," he said. But he added: "Do I think one is more competent than the other? No."
With Matthew Chayes and Andrew Ehinger
Robert Brodsky is a breaking news reporter who has worked at Newsday since 2011. He is a Queens College and American University alum.
SARRA SOUNDS OFF: Interview with Hills West's Anthony Raio On the latest episode of "Sarra Sounds Off," Half Hollow Hills West lacrosse and football star Anthony Raio, plus West Babylon honors recent car crash victims.
Top Stories
SARRA SOUNDS OFF: Interview with Hills West's Anthony Raio On the latest episode of "Sarra Sounds Off," Half Hollow Hills West lacrosse and football star Anthony Raio, plus West Babylon honors recent car crash victims.
