MTA and partners unveil vision for next stages in renewal of New York Penn Station railwaygazette.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from railwaygazette.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
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From tourism capital turned Covid epicenter it seemed almost impossible to reimagine a vibrant Big Apple buzzing with crowds after last year’s devastating images of plastic-wrapped bodies being loaded into mobile morgues. Or with the memory of quarantined residents cheering frontline workers every night from their rooftops and windows as the pandemic ravaged New York City.
But one year later, small signs of local life and recovery have begun emerging, including the return of domestic tourists, thanks to Covid vaccinations, warmer weather and an end to the state’s domestic travel quarantine since April 1.
Governor Andrew M. Cuomo yesterday showed off several new renderings for the transformation on Penn Station into a 21st century addition to the new Empire Station Complex.
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority, Amtrak and NJ
TRANSIT are working together on the plans to unify the separate railroads’
concourses into one open, light-filled space through two fundamental approaches
following a yearlong strategic re-envisioning process, supported by
FXCollaborative and WSP.
“The Empire Station Complex is a transformative project
that will support and deliver on the long-delayed Gateway vision for the entire
East Coast and enhance the passenger experience in North America’s busiest
Photos: Windowless Concourses Out, Bright Atriums In: Plans to Redo NYC s Penn Station Unveiled
One alternative would retain the station’s two-level boarding configuration but would add a central atrium and a new entrance on Eighth Avenue, as well as widened concourses and more access points to train platforms. The new entrance would require the purchase of Madison Square Garden’s Hulu Theater.
The second alternative would create an open, single-level concourse larger than the iconic Great Hall of Grand Central Terminal, with two new entrances on the Seventh Avenue side and a multi-story atrium in a former taxiway between the station and adjacent 2 Penn Plaza that has been closed since 9/11.