Amtrak Plans to Close Several Penn Station Tracks for Major Repairs -
By EMMA G. FITZSIMMONS and PATRICK McGEEHANAPRIL 27, 2017
Amtrak officials confirmed on Thursday that they were planning to close several tracks at Pennsylvania Station in New York this summer for major repairs,
but the railroad’s chief executive refused to say how many tracks would be closed or for how long.
It doesn’t mean that there are going to be lots of tracks closed every weekday for extended periods of time,
and part of our goal is to make sure that we minimize that.”
Mr. Moorman said Amtrak would defer spending on technological improvements to pay for the accelerated replacement of tracks in the station, which he estimated would cost “tens of millions of dollars.” He also announced several proposals to improve operations
and safety at Penn Station, including creating a joint operations center to coordinate responses to incidents.
But they’re doing it now, and that’s going to be good for the commuting public over the course of
the next couple of years when these improvements are made and service becomes more reliable.”
Mr. Christie said that Amtrak’s admission proved that the recent troubles at Penn Station were “predominantly Amtrak issues” and
that he had been right to call Amtrak to account for them.
On Thursday, Mr. Moorman said Amtrak wanted to consult with New Jersey Transit and the Long Island Rail Road, the other railroads
that use the station, before disclosing details about the track closings.