View source for New York Penn Station


{{Short description|Major rail hub in New York City}}
{{About|the modern intercity rail station in New York City|other uses|Pennsylvania Station (disambiguation){{!}}Pennsylvania Station (disambiguation)}}
{{Use American English|date=February 2025}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=May 2025}}
{{Infobox station
| name               = Pennsylvania Station<br />{{small|New York, NY}}
| style              = Amtrak
| image              = {{Photomontage
  | photo1a      = Moynihan Train Hall interior, Dec_27_2022.jpg{{!}}Moynihan Train Hall
  | photo2a      = Penn Station concourse.jpg{{!}}Main concourse under Madison Square Garden
  | spacing      = 2
  | position     = center
  | color_border = white
  | color        = white
  | size         = 260
}}
| caption            = [[Moynihan Train Hall]] (top) and the station's main concourse (below)
| address            = Bounded by [[Seventh Avenue (Manhattan)|7th]] & [[Ninth Avenue (Manhattan)|9th]] Avenues and [[31st Street (Manhattan)|31st]] & [[33rd Street (Manhattan)|33rd]] Streets<br />(under [[Madison Square Garden]] and in [[James A. Farley Building]])
| borough            = [[Midtown Manhattan]], [[New York City]]
| country            = United States
| owned              = [[Amtrak]]
| line               = [[Northeast Corridor]] ([[Hell Gate Line]])<br>[[Empire Corridor]] ([[West Side Line]])
| platform           = 11 [[island platform]]s
| tracks             = 21
| connections        = {{Unbulleted list
   | {{rint|newyork|subway}} [[New York City Subway]]:
   | {{NYCS Broadway-Seventh south|time=bullets}} at {{stl|NYCS|34th Street–Penn Station|Broadway-Seventh}}
   | {{NYCS Eighth south|time=bullets}} at {{stl|NYCS|34th Street–Penn Station|Eighth}}<hr/>
   | {{rint|metro|link=Port Authority Trans-Hudson}} {{rint|path|18px}} [[Port Authority Trans-Hudson|PATH]]: [[JSQ–33]], [[HOB–33]], [[JSQ–33 (via HOB)]] (at [[33rd Street (PATH station)|33rd Street]])<hr/>
   | {{bus icon}} [[NYCT Bus]]: {{NYC bus link|M7|M20|M34 SBS|M34A SBS|SIM23|SIM24}}<br>
{{bus icon}} [[MTA Bus]]: {{NYC bus link|Q32}}<hr/>
   | {{bus icon}} {{rint|flix|bus}} [[Flixbus]]: [[Eastern Shuttle (bus company)|Eastern Shuttle]]
   | {{bus icon}} [[Tripper Bus]]
   | {{bus icon}} [[Vamoose Bus]]

   }}
| parking            = 
| bicycle            = 
| accessible         = Yes
| code               = {{Amtrak code|NYP}}<br>{{Via Rail code|NEWY}}
| iata               = ZYP
| zone               = [[City Terminal Zone|Zone 1]] (LIRR)<br />Zone 1 (NJ Transit)
| opened             = [[Pennsylvania Station (1910–1963)|{{start date and age|1910}}]]
| rebuilt            = 1963–{{start date and age|1968}}
| mpassengers        = {{rail pass box|system=NJT|passengers=27,296,100 {{small|annually}}<ref>{{Cite web |title=NJ Transit Facts at a Glance |url=https://www.njtransit.com/pdf/FactsAtaGlance.pdf |access-date=October 2, 2016 |publisher=New Jersey Transit |archive-date=November 18, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121118235545/https://www.njtransit.com/pdf/FactsAtaGlance.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Kiefer |first=Eric |date=February 21, 2018 |title=How Many Riders Use NJ Transit's Hoboken Train Station? |language=en |work=Hoboken Patch |url=https://patch.com/new-jersey/hoboken/how-many-riders-use-nj-transit-s-hoboken-train-station |access-date=July 18, 2018}}</ref><!--93,305 weekday arrivals and departures from Penn Station. Breakdown for Saturday and Sunday is not given but it can be calculated by looking at the percentage drop in total ridership. 307853 total trips took place on NJ Transit on a weekday, 104088 took place on Saturday and 87709 on Sunday. Which means ridership on Saturday is 33.8% that of an average weekday and ridership on Sunday is 28.5% that of a weekday. Which gives (93305*0.338) = 31547 arrivals and departures from Penn Station on Saturday and (93305*0.285) = 26853 arrivals and departures from Penn Station Sunday. Giving us a yearly total of ((93305*5)+31547+26853)*52 = '''27,296,100'''-->|pass_year=2017}}
{{rail pass box|system=Amtrak|passengers={{Amtrak ridership|New York City (Penn Station)}} {{small|annually}}{{Amtrak ridership|citationNY}}|pass_year={{Amtrak ridership|date}}}}
{{rail pass box|system=LIRR|passengers=69,722,560 {{small|annually; based on average arrivals and departures}}<ref>{{Cite web |title=2017 Ridership Book |url=http://web.mta.info/mta/news/books/docs/2017%20LIRR%20Ridership%20Book.pdf |access-date=August 19, 2021 |publisher=MTA Long Island Rail Road |language=en |archive-date=August 16, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210816220446/http://web.mta.info/mta/news/books/docs/2017%20LIRR%20Ridership%20Book.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref><!--117180 daily weekday arrivals, 116160 daily weekday departures, 48960 Saturday arrivals, 48470 Saturday departures, 36950 Sunday arrivals, 40700 Sunday departures. This gives us a yearly total of ((117180+116160)*5+(48960+48470)+(36950+40700))*52 = '''69,722,560'''-->|pass_year=2017}}
| services_collapsible = yes
| services           = {{Adjacent stations
  |system1=Amtrak
    |line1=Acela Express|left1=Newark Penn|right1=Stamford
    |line2=Vermonter|left2=Newark Penn|right2=Stamford
    |line3=Northeast Regional|left3=Newark Penn|right3=New Rochelle
    |line4=Adirondack|left4=Yonkers
    |line5=Berkshire Flyer|left5=Yonkers|note-mid5=(seasonal)
    |line6=Cardinal|left6=Newark Penn
    |line7=Carolinian|left7=Newark Penn
    |line8=Crescent|left8=Newark Penn
    |line9=Empire Service|left9=Yonkers
    |line10=Ethan Allen Express|left10=Yonkers
    |line11=Keystone Service|left11=Newark Penn
    |line12=Lake Shore Limited|left12=Croton–Harmon
    |line13=Maple Leaf|left13=Yonkers
    |line14=Palmetto|left15=Newark Penn
    |line15=Pennsylvanian|left14=Newark Penn
    |line16=Silver Meteor|left16=Newark Penn
  |system18=LIRR
    |line19=Port Washington|right19=Woodside|to-right19=Port Washington
    |line20=Hempstead|right20=Woodside
    |line21=Port Jefferson|right21=Woodside
    |line22=Oyster Bay|right22=Jamaica|note-mid22=limited service
    |line23=Ronkonkoma|right23=Woodside|to-right23=Ronkonkoma
    |line24=Montauk|right24=Jamaica
    |line25=Cannonball|right25=Westhampton
    |line26=Far Rockaway|right26=Woodside
    |line27=Babylon|right27=Woodside
    |line28=West Hempstead|right28=Woodside
    |line29=Long Beach|right29=Woodside
    |line30=Belmont Park|right30=Woodside
  |system31=NJ Transit
    |line32=Northeast Corridor|left32=Secaucus Junction
    |line33=North Jersey Coast|left33=Secaucus Junction
    |line34=Montclair-Boonton|left34=Secaucus Junction
    |line35=Morristown|left35=Secaucus Junction
    |line36=Raritan Valley|left36=Secaucus Junction
    |line37=Gladstone|left37=Secaucus Junction
  }}
| other_services_header = Former services
| other_services_collapsible = yes
| other_services     = {{Adjacent stations
  |system1=Amtrak
    |line2=Cape Codder|right2=Stamford|note-mid2=''1986–1996''
    |line3=Hilltopper|left3=Newark, New Jersey|right3=Stamford|note-mid3=''1978–1979''
    |line4=Metroliner|left4=Newark, New Jersey|note-mid4=''1971–2006''
    |line5=Montrealer|left5=Newark, New Jersey|right5=Rye|note-mid5=''1972–1995''
    |line6=National Limited|left6=Newark, New Jersey|note-mid6=''1971–1979''
    |line7=Broadway Limited|left7=Newark, New Jersey|note-mid7=''1971–1995''
    |line8=Three Rivers|left8=Newark, New Jersey|note-mid8=''1995–2005''
    |line9=Silver Star|left9=Newark Penn|note-mid9=''1971–2024''
  |system10=NJ Transit
    |line10=ACES|left10=Newark Penn|note-mid10=2009–2011
  }}
| other_services2_header = Future services
| other_services2_collapsible = yes
| other_services2    = {{Adjacent stations
  |system1=Amtrak
    |line2=Northeast Regional|to-left2=Norfolk, Newport News or Christiansburg|left2=Newark Penn|right2=Jamaica|to-right2=Ronkonkoma
  |system3=Metro-North Railroad
    |line4=New Haven Penn|right4=Hunts Point
    |line5=Port Jervis|left5=Secaucus Junction|right5=|to-right5=New York
  |system6=NJ Transit
    |line7=Pascack Valley|left7=Secaucus Junction|right7=|to-right7=New York
    |line8=Main|left8=Secaucus Junction|right8=|to-right8=New York
    |line9=Bergen County|left9=Secaucus Junction|right9=|to-right9=New York}}
| embedded           = {{Infobox historic site
   | embed       = yes
   | other_name  = '''Interactive map'''
   | coordinates = {{Wikidatacoord|Q54451|type:railwaystation_region:US-NY_scale:10000|display=inline,title}}
   | image_map   = {{Maplink|frame=yes|plain=yes|frame-align=center|frame-width=300|frame-height=180|zoom=13|type=point|title=Pennsylvania Station|description=|marker=rail}}
   | image_map_caption =
   }}
}}

'''Pennsylvania Station''' (also known as '''New York Penn Station''' or simply '''Penn Station''') is the main [[inter-city rail|intercity]] [[railroad station]] in [[New York City]] and the [[List of busiest railway stations in North America|busiest]] transportation facility in the [[Western Hemisphere]], serving more than 600,000 passengers per weekday {{as of|2019|lc=y}}.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Kimmelman |first=Michael |date=April 24, 2019 |title=When the Old Penn Station Was Demolished, New York Lost Its Faith |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/24/nyregion/old-penn-station-pictures-new-york.html |access-date=April 24, 2019}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Leonard |first=Devin |date=January 10, 2018 |title=The Most Awful Transit Center in America Could Get Unimaginably Worse |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2018-01-10/the-most-awful-transit-center-in-america-could-get-unimaginably-worse |access-date=November 14, 2018 |publisher=Bloomberg L.P}}</ref>{{efn|The breakdown of Penn Station's ridership:
* Commuter and intercity rail comprise about 355,000 daily weekday passengers.
** LIRR has an average of 233,340 daily weekday passengers.
** NJ Transit has an average of 93,305 daily weekday passengers.
** Amtrak has an average of 28,487 daily passengers, when annual totals are averaged.
* The two subway stations have a combined average of approximately 200,000 daily weekday passengers. However, this only includes entries and not exits.
* The remainder of the ridership, around 75,000 passengers, may use other transportation such as buses, taxis, or ride-sharing, and may include passengers exiting from the subway.
}} The station is located beneath [[Madison Square Garden]] in the block bounded by [[Seventh Avenue (Manhattan)|Seventh]] and [[Eighth Avenue (Manhattan)|Eighth]] Avenues and 31st and 33rd Streets and in the [[James A. Farley Building]], with additional exits to nearby streets, in [[Midtown Manhattan]]. It is close to several popular Manhattan locations, including [[Herald Square]], the [[Empire State Building]], [[Koreatown, Manhattan|Koreatown]], and [[Macy's Herald Square]].

Penn Station has 21 tracks fed by seven tunnels, including its two [[North River Tunnels]], four [[East River Tunnels]], and one [[Empire Connection]] tunnel. It is at the center of the [[Northeast Corridor]], a passenger rail line that connects New York City with [[Boston]] to its north and [[Philadelphia]], [[Baltimore]], and [[Washington, D.C.]] to its south, along with various intermediate stations. Intercity trains are operated by [[Amtrak]], which owns the station, while [[commuter rail]] services are operated by the [[Long Island Rail Road]] (LIRR) and [[NJ Transit Rail Operations|NJ Transit]] (NJT). Connections are available within the complex to the [[New York City Subway]] and buses.

Penn Station is named for the [[Pennsylvania Railroad]] (PRR), its builder and original owner, and shares its name with several stations in other cities. The [[Pennsylvania Station (1910–1963)|original Pennsylvania Station]] was an ornate [[station building]] designed by [[McKim, Mead, and White]] and considered a masterpiece of the [[Beaux-Arts architecture|Beaux-Arts]] style. Completed in 1910, it enabled direct rail access to New York City from the south for the first time. Its [[head house]] and [[train shed]] were torn down in 1963 at a time of low train ridership, with the rail infrastructure reconstituted as the smaller underground station that survives today. The ''[[New York Times]]'' editorial board described the demolition of the original station as a "monumental act of vandalism",<ref name="NYT1063" /> and its destruction galvanized the modern [[historic preservation]] movement.<ref name="Gray 2001" />

The 2020s saw the opening of [[Moynihan Train Hall]], an expansion of Penn Station into the [[James A. Farley Building|Farley Post Office building]],<ref name="Goldbaum" /> as well as expansion of the LIRR concourse and a new direct entrance from 33rd Street.<ref name="Vantuono" /> [[#Planning and redevelopment|Prospective further plans]] call for reconstruction of the core of the station, which has seen competing proposals regarding the station's relationship to Madison Square Garden,<ref name="6sqft202010422" /> the potential reopening of the [[Gimbels passageway]] to Herald Square,<ref>{{cite news |last=Penner |first=Larry |date=January 7, 2014 |url=http://observer.com/2014/01/reopen-the-forgotten-hilton-passageway/ |title=Reopen the Forgotten Hilton Passageway |work=Observer |department=Opinions |access-date=August 25, 2025}}</ref> and the construction of an annex one block south with new platforms to add capacity and connect to the [[Gateway Program (Northeast Corridor)|Gateway Program]] tunnels under the Hudson River.<ref name="Velkind">{{Cite news |last=Vielkind |first=Jimmy |date=January 7, 2020 |title=Cuomo Says State Will Acquire Manhattan Block to Expand Penn Station |language=en-US |work=[[The Wall Street Journal]] |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/cuomo-says-state-will-acquire-manhattan-block-to-expand-penn-station-11578341508 |access-date=January 7, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Brenzel |first=Kathryn |date=November 3, 2021 |title=Hochul downsizes Cuomo's Penn Station plan |language=en-US |work=The Real Deal |url=https://therealdeal.com/2021/11/03/hochul-downsizes-cuomos-penn-station-plan/ |access-date=September 4, 2022}}</ref>

{{TOC limit|3}}

== History ==
=== Planning and construction ===
{{Main|New York Tunnel Extension}}
[[File:Brooklyn Museum - Pennsylvania Station Excavation - George Wesley Bellows - overall.jpg|thumb|left|''Pennsylvania Station Excavation'', a painting by [[George Bellows]]]]
Until the early 20th century, the PRR's rail network terminated on the western side of the [[Hudson River]] (once known locally as the [[North River (Hudson River)|North River]]) at [[Exchange Place (PRR station)|Exchange Place]] in [[Jersey City, New Jersey]]. Manhattan-bound passengers boarded [[Ferry|ferries]] to cross the Hudson River for the final stretch of their journey.<ref>{{Cite Cudahy-Hudson|page=44}}</ref>

The rival [[New York Central Railroad]]'s line ran down Manhattan from the north under [[Park Avenue]] and terminated at [[Grand Central Depot]] (later replaced by [[Grand Central Terminal]]) at [[42nd Street (Manhattan)|42nd Street]].<ref>{{Cite news |last=Roberts |first=Sam |date=January 18, 2013 |title=The Birth of Grand Central Terminal |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/20/nyregion/the-birth-of-grand-central-terminal-100-years-later.html?pagewanted=all |access-date=November 8, 2015}}</ref> Many proposals for a cross-Hudson connection were advanced in the late 19th century, but financial panics in the 1870s and 1890s scared off potential investors. In any event, none of the proposals advanced during this time were considered feasible.<ref name="greatamericanstations.com">{{Cite web |year=2016 |title=New York – Penn Station, NY (NYP) |url=http://www.greatamericanstations.com/stations/new-york-penn-station-ny-nyp/ |website=the Great American Stations |publisher=Amtrak}}</ref>

An early proposal for a bridge was considered but rejected.<ref name="Kalmbach">{{Cite book |last=Donovan |first=Frank P. Jr. |title=Railroads of America |publisher=Kalmbach Publishing |year=1949 |location=Milwaukee}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Keys |first=C. M. |date=July 1910 |title=Cassatt and His Vision:Half a Billion Dollars Spent in Ten Years to Improve a Single Railroad&nbsp;– The End of a Forty-Year Effort to Cross the Hudson |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HsrkfU461xAC&pg=PA13187 |journal=[[World's Work|The World's Work: A History of Our Time]] |volume=XX |pages=13187–13204 |access-date=July 10, 2009}}</ref> The alternative was to tunnel under the river, but this was infeasible for [[steam locomotive]] use.<ref name="AEK">{{Cite book |last=Klein |first=Aaron E |url=http://search.barnesandnoble.com/booksearch/isbninquiry.asp?box=0-517-460858&pos=-1&ISBN=0517460858 |title=History of the New York Central |date=January 1988 |publisher=Bison Books |isbn=0-517-46085-8 |location=Greenwich, Connecticut |page=128 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110607110632/http://search.barnesandnoble.com/History-of-the-New-York-Central/Aaron-E-Klein/e/9780517460856?box=0-517-460858&pos=-1 |archive-date=June 7, 2011}}</ref> The development of the [[electric locomotive]] at the turn of the 20th century made a tunnel feasible. In 1901, PRR president [[Alexander Cassatt]] announced the railroad's plan to enter New York City by tunneling under the Hudson and building a grand station on the West Side of Manhattan south of [[34th Street (Manhattan)|34th Street]].<ref>{{Cite news |date=December 12, 1901 |title=Pennsylvania's Tunnel Under North River; Property Already Acquired for the Great New York Terminal |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1901/12/12/archives/pennsylvanias-tunnel-under-north-river-property-already-acquired.html |access-date=May 22, 2018 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> The station would sit in Manhattan's [[Tenderloin, Manhattan|Tenderloin district]], a historical [[red-light district]] known for its corruption and prostitution.<ref name="riseandfallofpennstation">{{Cite web |last=McLowery |first=Randall |date=February 18, 2014 |title=The Rise and Fall of Penn Station – American Experience |url=https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/films/penn/ |access-date=December 10, 2018 |publisher=PBS}}</ref>

Beginning in June 1903, the two single-track [[North River Tunnels]] were bored from the west under the Hudson River.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Mills |first=William Wirt |url=https://archive.org/stream/pennsylvaniarail00mill/pennsylvaniarail00mill_djvu.txt |title=Pennsylvania Railroad tunnels and terminals in New York City |date=1908 |publisher=Moses King |access-date=May 26, 2018}}</ref> A second set of four single-track tunnels, the [[East River Tunnels]], were bored from the east under the [[East River]], linking the new station to [[Queens]], the PRR-owned Long Island Rail Road, and [[Sunnyside Yard]] in Queens, where trains would be maintained and assembled.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Gilbert |first1=Gilbert H. |title=The Subways and Tunnels of New York: Methods and Costs, with an Appendix on Tunneling Machinery and Methods and Tables of Engineering Data |last2=Wightman |first2=Lucius I. |last3=Saunders |first3=William L. |publisher=John Wiley & Sons |year=1912 |location=New York |page=111 |chapter=The East River Tunnels of the Pennsylvania Railroad |access-date=October 11, 2009 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=a8wgAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA111}}</ref> Construction was completed on the Hudson River tunnels on October 9, 1906,<ref>{{Cite web |date=October 10, 1906 |title=The Pennsylvania Opens Its Second River Tube; A Real Experience Tramping Through the Bores |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1906/10/10/archives/the-pennsylvania-opens-its-second-river-tube-a-real-experience.html |access-date=May 23, 2018 |website=The New York Times}}</ref> and on the East River tunnels on March 18, 1908.<ref>{{Cite web |date=March 19, 1908 |title=Fourth River Tube Through; Last of Pennsylvania-Long Island Tunnels Connected – Sandhogs Celebrate. |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1908/03/19/archives/fourth-river-tube-through-last-of-pennsylvanialong-island-tunnels.html |access-date=May 23, 2018 |website=The New York Times}}</ref>

=== Original structure ===
{{Main|Pennsylvania Station (1910–1963)}}
[[File:Penn 2163723600 1bb4d3f9c6 o crop.jpg|thumb|The exterior of Penn Station in 1911]]
[[File:Penn Station, Interior, Manhattan (NYPL b13668355-482562).jpg|thumb|Penn Station's interior in the 1930s]]
[[File:PennsylvaniaStationNYStairs 02.JPG|thumb|One of few remnants of the original station still in use, a staircase between tracks 3 and 4]]
A small portion of Penn Station opened on September 8, 1910, in conjunction with the opening of the [[East River Tunnels]], and [[Long Island Rail Road|LIRR]] riders gained direct railroad service to [[Manhattan]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=September 9, 1910 |title=Day Long Throng Inspects New Tube; 35,000 Persons Were Carried on the First Day of Pennsylvania's Tunnel Service. |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1910/09/09/archives/day-long-throng-inspects-new-tube-35000-persons-were-carried-on-the.html |access-date=May 22, 2018 |website=The New York Times}}</ref> On November 27, 1910, Penn Station was fully opened to the public.<ref>{{Cite news |date=November 27, 1910 |title=Pennsylvania Opens Its Great Station; First Regular Train Sent Through the Hudson River Tunnel at Midnight. |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1910/11/27/archives/pennsylvania-opens-its-great-station-first-regular-train-sent.html |access-date=May 23, 2018 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> With the station's full opening, the PRR became the only railroad to enter New York City from the south.<ref>{{Cite web |date=March 1, 1976 |title=Pennsylvania Railroad Company – American railway |url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/Pennsylvania-Railroad-Company |access-date=May 19, 2019 |website=Encyclopædia Britannica}}</ref>

During half a century of operation by the Pennsylvania Railroad (1910–1963), scores of intercity passenger trains arrived and departed daily to [[Chicago]] and [[St. Louis, Missouri|St. Louis]] on "Pennsy" rails and beyond on connecting railroads to [[Miami]] and the west. Along with [[Long Island Rail Road]] trains, Penn Station saw trains of the [[New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad|New Haven]] and the [[Lehigh Valley Railroad|Lehigh Valley]] railroads. A side effect of the tunneling project was to open the city up to the suburbs, and within 10 years of opening, two-thirds of the daily passengers coming through Penn Station were commuters.<ref name="riseandfallofpennstation" />

The station put the Pennsylvania Railroad at comparative advantage to its competitors offering direct service from Manhattan to the west and south. Other railroads began their routes at terminals in [[Weehawken Terminal|Weehawken]], [[Hoboken Terminal|Hoboken]], [[Pavonia Terminal|Pavonia]] and [[Central Railroad of New Jersey Terminal|Communipaw]] which required passengers from New York City to take the interstate Hudson Tubes (now [[PATH (rail system)|PATH]]) or ferries across the Hudson River before boarding their trains. By 1945, at its peak, more than 100 million passengers a year traveled through Penn Station.<ref name="riseandfallofpennstation" />

By the late 1950s, intercity rail passenger volumes had declined dramatically with the coming of the [[Jet Age]] and the [[Interstate Highway System]]. The station's exterior had become somewhat grimy, and due to its vast scale, the station was expensive to maintain.<ref name="lostfaith">{{Cite news |last=Kimmelman |first=Michael |author-link=Michael Kimmelman |date=April 24, 2019 |title=When the Old Penn Station Was Demolished, New York Lost Its Faith |work=[[The New York Times]] |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/24/nyregion/old-penn-station-pictures-new-york.html}}</ref><ref name="100th" /> A renovation covered some of the grand columns with plastic and blocked off the spacious central hallway with a new ticket office. The Pennsylvania Railroad optioned the air rights, which called for the demolition of the [[head house]] and [[train shed]], to be replaced by an office complex and a new sports complex, while the tracks of the station would remain untouched.{{efn|The Railway and Engineering Review article says at their highest the station tracks were nine feet below sea level.}}

Plans for the new [[Penn Plaza]] and Madison Square Garden were announced in 1962. In exchange for the air rights to Penn Station, the PRR would receive a smaller underground station at no cost and a 25 percent stake in the new Madison Square Garden Complex. Modern architects rushed to save the ornate building, but to no avail;<ref name="Gray">{{Cite news |last=Gray |first=Christopher |date=May 20, 2001 |title='The Destruction of Penn Station'; A 1960's Protest That Tried to Save a Piece of the Past |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2001/05/20/realestate/streetscapes-destruction-penn-station-1960-s-protest-that-tried-save-piece-past.html |access-date=January 16, 2010}}</ref> demolition of the above-ground [[head house]] began in October 1963.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Tolchin |first=Martin |date=October 29, 1963 |title=Demolition Starts At Penn Station; Architects Picket; Penn Station Demolition Begun; 6 Architects Call Act a 'Shame' |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1963/10/29/archives/demolition-starts-at-penn-station-architects-picket-penn-station.html |access-date=May 22, 2018 |website=The New York Times}}</ref> A giant steel deck was placed over the tracks and platforms to allow rail service to continue during construction. Photographs of the day showed passengers waiting for trains even as the head house was demolished around them.<ref name="lostfaith" /> This was possible because most of the rail infrastructure (including the waiting room, concourses, and boarding platforms) was below street level.<ref name="GAS">[http://www.greatamericanstations.com/Stations/NYP "New York – Penn Station, NY (NYP)"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131007063354/http://www.greatamericanstations.com/Stations/NYP |date=October 7, 2013 }}, ''Great American Stations Project''. 2013 Amtrak. Retrieved October 5, 2013</ref>

The demolition of the Penn Station head house was controversial and caused outrage internationally.<ref name="sun" /><ref name="NYT1063">{{Cite news |date=October 30, 1963 |title=Farewell to Penn Station |work=[[The New York Times]] |url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/svc/tmach/v1/refer?pdf=true&res=9407EFD8113DE63BBC4850DFB6678388679EDE |access-date=July 13, 2010}}</ref> "One entered the city like a god. One scuttles in now like a rat," the architectural historian [[Vincent Scully]] famously wrote of the original station.<ref>Herbert Muschamp, "Architecture View; In This Dream Station Future and Past Collide," New York Times, June 20, 1993.</ref> The controversy over the demolition of such a well-known landmark, and its deplored replacement,<ref>{{Cite news |last=Kamin |first=Blair |date=January 23, 2005 |title=New Randolph station works within its limits |work=The Chicago Tribune |url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/2005/01/23/new-randolph-station-works-within-its-limits/}}</ref> is often cited as a catalyst for the architectural preservation movement in the United States.<ref name="Gray 2001">{{Cite web |last=Gray |first=Christopher |date=May 20, 2001 |title=Streetscapes/'The Destruction of Penn Station'; A 1960's Protest That Tried to Save a Piece of the Past |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2001/05/20/realestate/streetscapes-destruction-penn-station-1960-s-protest-that-tried-save-piece-past.html |access-date=September 6, 2018 |website=The New York Times}}</ref> Within the decade, Grand Central Terminal was protected under the city's new [[New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission|landmarks preservation act]], a protection [[Penn Central Transportation Co. v. New York City|upheld by the courts in 1978]] after a challenge by Grand Central's owner, [[Penn Central]] (the corporate successor of the PRR, following its merger with the rival New York Central Railroad).<ref>{{Cite news |last=Weinstein |first=Jon |date=January 29, 2013 |title=Grand Central Terminal At 100: Legal Battle Nearly Led To Station's Demolition |work=NY1 |url=http://www.ny1.com/content/special_reports/grand_central_terminal_at_100/176190/grand-central-terminal-at-100--legal-battle-nearly-led-to-station-s-demolition |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130617175450/http://www.ny1.com/content/special_reports/grand_central_terminal_at_100/176190/grand-central-terminal-at-100--legal-battle-nearly-led-to-station-s-demolition |archive-date=June 17, 2013}}</ref>

=== Under Madison Square Garden ===
{{See also|Madison Square Garden|Pennsylvania Plaza}}
[[File:NEW CAR DISPLAY AND AMTRAK PASSENGER TRAIN TICKET COUNTERS IN THE BACKGROUND AT NEW YORK CITY'S PENNSYLVANIA STATION... - NARA - 556703.jpg|thumb|Amtrak concourse in 1974]]
Post-1968, the core Penn Station has been underground, sitting below Madison Square Garden, 33rd Street, and Two Penn Plaza. The core has three levels: [[concourses]] on the upper two levels and [[train platform]]s on the lowest. The two levels of concourses, while renovated and expanded during the construction of Madison Square Garden, are original to the 1910 station, as are the tracks and platforms.<ref>{{Cite web |title=New York – Penn Station, NY (NYP) |url=http://www.greatamericanstations.com/Stations/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131007063354/http://www.greatamericanstations.com/Stations/NYP |archive-date=October 7, 2013 |access-date=October 5, 2013 |website=greatamericanstations.com}}</ref>

Over the following decades, various renovations attempted to add service and some concourse space. The West End Concourse under Eighth Avenue opened in 1986.<ref name="Washington">{{Cite news |last=Washington |first=Ruby |date=December 12, 1986 |title=New Concourse Opens at Pennsylvania Station |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1986/12/23/nyregion/new-concourse-opens-at-pennsylvania-station.html |access-date=July 18, 2009}}</ref> In 1987, a rail connection to the [[West Side Rail Yard]] opened,<ref>{{Cite news |last=Doherty |first=Matthew |date=November 7, 2004 |title=Far West Side Story |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2004/11/07/nyregion/07tunn.html |access-date=March 6, 2010}}</ref> and in 1991, the opening of the [[West Side Line#Empire Connection|Empire Connection]] allowed Amtrak to consolidate all of its New York City trains at Penn Station;<ref>{{Cite news |date=April 7, 191 |title=Travel Advisory; Grand Central Trains Rerouted To Penn Station |work=[[The New York Times]] |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1991/04/07/travel/travel-advisory-grand-central-trains-rerouted-to-penn-station.html |access-date=February 7, 2010}}</ref><ref name="AutoVN-77">{{Cite news |last=Johnson |first=Kirk |date=July 7, 1988 |title=Amtrak Trains To Stop Using Grand Central |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1988/07/07/nyregion/amtrak-trains-to-stop-using-grand-central.html |access-date=November 10, 2015}}</ref><ref name="AutoDR-83">{{Cite news |last=Barron |first=James |date=April 8, 1991 |title=Riding the Past From Grand Central |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1991/04/08/nyregion/riding-the-past-from-grand-central.html |access-date=December 11, 2018}}</ref> previously, trains from the [[Empire Corridor]] terminated at [[Grand Central Terminal]], a legacy of the two stations' respective roots in separate railroads.

In 1994, the station was renovated to add the 34th Street LIRR entrance and central corridor, along with artwork and improved waiting and concession areas.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Ain |first=Stewart |date=October 9, 1994 |title=High Marks for New Penn Station |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1994/10/09/nyregion/high-marks-for-new-penn-station.html |access-date=February 15, 2021}}</ref> The new entrance consisted of a {{convert|90|ft|m|adj=mid|-tall}} structure with a glass and brick facade, a clock salvaged from the original station, and air-conditioning units for the terminal.<ref name="nyt-1994-05-01">{{Cite news |last=Lambert |first=Bruce |date=May 1, 1994 |title=Neighborhoos Report: Midtown; At Penn Station, The Future Pulls In, Recalling the Past |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1994/05/01/nyregion/neighborhoos-report-midtown-penn-station-future-pulls-recalling-past.html |access-date=December 2, 2022 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> In 2002, the NJ Transit concourse was created in space previously occupied by retail and Amtrak office space,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Medina |first=Toni |date=September 18, 2002 |title=Commissioner Fox Unveils New 7th Avenue Concourse at Penn Station N. Y. – NJ TRANSIT – New Jersey |url=https://www.njtransit.com/press-releases/commissioner-fox-unveils-new-7th-avenue-concourse-penn-station-n-y |access-date=December 2, 2022 |website=NJ TRANSIT}}</ref> although the concourse could only be accessed from the Amtrak entrance on 32nd Street.<ref name="Medina 2009" /> Plans for a new entrance from 31st Street to the NJ Transit concourse were announced in 2006,<ref>{{Cite news |last=Ain |first=Stewart |date=October 9, 1994 |title=High Marks for New Penn Station |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1994/10/09/nyregion/high-marks-for-new-penn-station.html |access-date=December 2, 2022 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Rife |first=Judy |date=November 12, 2006 |title=NJ Transit plans to add Penn Station entrance |url=https://www.recordonline.com/story/business/2006/11/12/nj-transit-plans-to-add/53019678007/ |access-date=December 2, 2022 |website=Times Herald-Record}}</ref> and the entrance opened in 2009.<ref name="Medina 2009">{{Cite web |last=Medina |first=Toni |date=August 31, 2009 |title=New Street Entrance to NJ Transit Concourse Opens at NY Penn Station – NJ TRANSIT – New Jersey |url=https://www.njtransit.com/press-releases/new-street-entrance-nj-transit-concourse-opens-ny-penn-station |access-date=December 2, 2022 |website=NJ TRANSIT}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=September 1, 2009 |title=NJ Transit opens new entrance to Penn Station |url=https://www.recordonline.com/story/business/2009/09/01/nj-transit-opens-new-entrance/51881498007/ |access-date=December 2, 2022 |website=Times Herald-Record}}</ref> In 2020, the ticketed waiting room on the main concourse was renovated by Amtrak and NJ Transit to include furniture with USB outlets, an additional entrance, and a lactation suite.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.masstransitmag.com/rail/infrastructure/press-release/21163737/new-jersey-transit-nj-transit-nj-transit-amtrak-complete-refresh-of-ticketed-waiting-area-at-new-york-penn-station|title=NJ Transit, Amtrak complete refresh of ticketed waiting area at New York Penn Station|publisher=Mass Transit Magazine|date=November 23, 2020|accessdate=October 16, 2024}}</ref>

After the [[September 11 attacks]], security was increased and passenger flow curtailed. In 2002, $100&nbsp;million of work added security features such as lighting, cameras, and barricades.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Lueck |first=Thomas J. |date=June 17, 2003 |title=Threats and Responses: Security; Schumer Praises Work for Safer Penn Station, but Wants More |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2003/06/17/nyregion/threats-responses-security-schumer-praises-work-for-safer-penn-station-but-wants.html |access-date=December 14, 2018 |website=The New York Times}}</ref> The taxiway under Madison Square Garden, which ran from 31st Street to 33rd Street at mid-block, was permanently closed off with concrete [[Jersey barrier]]s. Escalators providing direct access to the lobby of Madison Square Garden were closed and later removed. The underground [[Gimbels Passageway]] connecting pedestrians to [[34th Street–Herald Square (New York City Subway)|34th Street–Herald Square]] has been sealed off since 1986,<ref>{{Cite web |date=July 14, 2010 |title=City Planning Commission July 14, 2010 / Calendar No. 31 C 100049 ZSM |url=http://archive.citylaw.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/31/cpc/2010/07.14.10/C-100049-ZSM.pdf |access-date=March 3, 2019 |website=citylaw.org |publisher=City Planning Commission}}</ref> after decades of safety concerns and sexual assaults.<ref name="NY Post 2010">{{Cite news |date=November 28, 2010 |title=Remembering the Gimbels tunnel |work=New York Post |url=https://nypost.com/2010/11/28/remembering-the-gimbels-tunnel/ |access-date=December 14, 2018}}</ref>

Despite the modest renovations, the underground Penn Station continued to be criticized as "reviled", "dysfunctional", and a low-ceilinged "[[catacomb]]" lacking charm, especially when compared to the much larger and more ornate Grand Central Terminal.<ref name="sun">{{Cite news |last=Rasmussen |first=Frederick N. |date=April 21, 2007 |title=From the Gilded Age, a monument to transit |work=[[The Baltimore Sun]] |url=https://www.baltimoresun.com/2007/04/21/from-the-gilded-age-a-monument-to-transit/ |access-date=December 21, 2012 |archive-date=March 4, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304093231/http://articles.baltimoresun.com/2007-04-21/news/0704210281_1_penn-station-pennsylvania-railroad-catacombs |url-status=live }}</ref> The ''[[New York Times]]'', in an editorial supporting development of an enlarged terminal, said that "Amtrak's beleaguered customers...scurry through underground rooms bereft of light or character,"<ref name="NYT1107">{{Cite news |date=November 2, 2007 |title=A Station Worthy of New York |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/02/opinion/02fri3.html |access-date=November 26, 2007}}</ref> and ''Times'' transit reporter Michael M. Grynbaum called Penn Station "the ugly stepchild of the city's two great rail terminals."<ref name="100th">{{Cite news |last=Grynbaum |first=Michael M. |date=October 18, 2010 |title=The Joys and Woes of Penn Station at 100 |work=The New York Times |url=http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/10/18/the-joys-and-woes-of-penn-station-at-100/ |access-date=February 3, 2013}}</ref> After its nadir in the 1960s, ridership exploded in subsequent decades, a situation never contemplated by the structure's designers. By the 2010s, the station operated at almost three times its intended capacity; over 600,000 passengers used the station daily in 2019.<ref name="lostfaith" />

=== Expansion and renovation ===
{{See also|Moynihan Train Hall}}
[[File:Penn Station Glass Roof.jpg|thumb|Steel-glass roof in April 2023]]
[[File:LIRR Penn Station 2023b.jpg|thumb|The renovated Long Island Rail Road concourse in 2023]]

In the early 1990s, U.S. Senator [[Daniel Patrick Moynihan]] proposed building a new station in the [[James A. Farley Building]], the city's former main post office across the street which was designed by the same firm as the original Penn Station; Moynihan had shined shoes in the original station as a boy.<ref name="Hsu 2020">{{Cite web |last=Hsu |first=Cindy |date=December 30, 2020 |title=Gov. Andrew Cuomo Cuts Ribbon On Moynihan Train Hall, Says Its Opening Is A Hopeful Sign For 2021 |url=https://newyork.cbslocal.com/2020/12/30/moynihan-train-hall/ |access-date=January 1, 2021 |website=CBS New York – Breaking News, Sports, Weather, Traffic and the Best of NY}}</ref><ref name="amNY 2016">{{Cite web |last=Lynch |first=Dennis |date=September 29, 2016 |title=Moynihan Train Hall On Track For 2020 |url=https://www.amny.com/news/moynihan-train-hall-on-track-for-2020/ |access-date=January 1, 2021 |website=amNewYork}}</ref><ref name="wsj20140302">{{Cite news |last1=Kusisto |first1=Laura |last2=Brown |first2=Eliot |date=March 3, 2014 |title=New York State Pushes for Penn Station Plan |language=en-US |work=[[The Wall Street Journal]] |url=https://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304026804579411571756703010.html |access-date=December 31, 2020 |issn=0099-9660}}</ref> Many redevelopment or expansion concepts were proposed over the 1990s and 2000s, but none reached fruition until funding from the 2009 [[American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009|American Recovery and Reinvestment Act]] enabled the expansion of the West End Concourse of the LIRR under the Farley Building in 2016.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Warerkar |first=Tanay |date=June 15, 2017 |title=Penn Station's West End Concourse finally opens to the public |url=https://ny.curbed.com/2017/6/15/15807744/penn-station-west-end-concourse-post-office |access-date=December 31, 2020 |website=Curbed NY}}</ref>

In 2016 New York Governor [[Andrew Cuomo]] announced plans for the renovation of Penn Station and mixed-use redevelopment of the Farley Building, including development of a new train hall, which he called the Empire Station Complex.<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Bagli |first1=Charles V. |last2=Fitzsimmons |first2=Emma G. |date=January 7, 2016 |title=Cuomo Lays Out Renovation Plan for Penn Station and Farley Post Office |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/07/nyregion/cuomo-lays-out-renovation-plan-for-penn-station-and-farley-post-office.html |access-date=May 30, 2016 |website=The New York Times}}</ref> In January 2021, the new expansion, [[Moynihan Train Hall]], opened and was named for the man who had conceived it.<ref name="Newsday opens Friday">{{Cite web |last=Coburn |first=Jesse |date=December 28, 2020 |title=NYC's Moynihan Train Hall opens Friday to LIRR commuters |url=https://www.newsday.com/news/new-york/moynihan-train-hall-lirr-penn-station-1.50103548 |access-date=December 28, 2020 |website=Newsday |archive-date=April 20, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210420091956/https://www.newsday.com/news/new-york/moynihan-train-hall-lirr-penn-station-1.50103548 |url-status=dead }}</ref> The $1.6 billion, {{convert|255,000|ft2|adj=on}} renovation retained the original, landmarked Beaux Arts Farley Building, added a central atrium with a glass roof, and provided access to Amtrak and LIRR trains.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Guse |first=Clayton |date=June 20, 2017 |title=Penn Station is officially getting a massive expansion |url=https://www.timeout.com/newyork/blog/penn-station-is-officially-getting-a-massive-expansion-062017 |access-date=May 27, 2018 |website=Time Out New York}}</ref><ref name="Goldbaum">{{Cite news|last=Goldbaum|first=Christina|date=December 30, 2020|title=New Train Hall Opens at Penn Station, Echoing Building's Former Glory|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/30/nyregion/moynihan-penn-station.html|work=The New York Times|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331|access-date=December 30, 2020}}</ref>  A new 33rd Street entrance to the LIRR concourse opened at the same time.<ref name="Vantuono">{{Cite web |last=Vantuono |first=William |date=December 31, 2020 |title=LIRR East End Gateway Opens |url=https://www.railwayage.com/passenger/commuterregional/lirr-east-end-gateway-opens/ |access-date=January 23, 2021 |website=Railway Age}}</ref> The station received a place in the world selection for the 2021 [[Prix Versailles]] in the passenger stations category.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The World Selections for Airports, Campuses, Passenger Stations and Sportsmark the opening of the Prix Versailles 2021 |url=https://c0f292af-c201-4777-a6fc-a42687105959.filesusr.com/ugd/a1118c_6af1b201b18d4829a68405ad9b45d378.pdf |access-date=July 16, 2021 |website=Prix Versailles |publisher=World Prix Versailles Organization |page=4}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Dejtiar |first=Fabian |date=July 27, 2021 |title=Prix Versailles 2021: World Selections for Airports, Campuses, Passenger Stations and Sports announced |url=https://www.archdaily.com/965687/prix-versailles-2021-world-selections-for-airports-campuses-passenger-stations-and-sports-announced |access-date=August 1, 2021 |work=Architecture Daily}}</ref>

Following the opening of the 33rd Street entrance, the LIRR concourse was doubled in width from {{convert|30|to|57|ft|m}}, and the ceilings were raised to a minimum height of {{convert|18|ft|m}}<ref name="MTA 2018">{{Cite web |date=September 6, 2018 |title=news – Governor Cuomo Announces New Main Entrance to Penn Station and Expansion of LIRR Concourse |url=http://www.mta.info/news/2018/09/06/governor-cuomo-announces-new-main-entrance-penn-station-and-expansion-lirr-concourse |access-date=September 7, 2018 |website=MTA |archive-date=June 28, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210628025851/http://www.mta.info/news/2018/09/06/governor-cuomo-announces-new-main-entrance-penn-station-and-expansion-lirr-concourse |url-status=dead }}</ref> by removing seven "head knockers",<ref name="Duggan 2022">{{Cite web |last=Duggan |first=Kevin |date=March 8, 2022 |title=That's using your head! MTA takes out 'head knocker' beams from Penn Station |url=https://www.amny.com/transit/mta-takes-out-head-knocker-beams-from-penn-station/ |access-date=September 8, 2022 |website=amNewYork}}</ref> low-hanging steel beams only {{convert|6|ft|8|in}} above the concourse's floor which were part of the original Penn Station;<ref name="Nessen 2022">{{Cite web |last=Nessen |first=Stephen |date=March 9, 2022 |title=Penn Station 'head knockers' are coming down |url=https://gothamist.com/news/penn-station-head-knockers-are-coming-down |access-date=September 8, 2022 |website=Gothamist}}</ref><ref name="NBC New York 202209">{{Cite web |date=September 6, 2022 |title='Crummy Terminal' NYers Endured for 50 Years Gets Its Makeover. See Penn's New LIRR Concourse |url=https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/penn-stations-new-lirr-concourse-opens/3852412/ |access-date=September 8, 2022 |website=NBC New York}}</ref> the expansion was completed in March 2023.<ref>{{Cite web |date=April 6, 2023 |title=Long Island Rail Road Concourse and East End Gateway |url=https://new.mta.info/project/lirr-concourse-east-end-gateway |access-date=April 10, 2023 |website=new.mta.info}}</ref> 33rd Street between Seventh and Eighth Avenues was converted into a pedestrian plaza and permanently closed to vehicular traffic,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Barone |first=Vincent |date=September 6, 2018 |title=Midtown block could permanently close for Penn project |url=https://www.amny.com/transit/penn-station-cuomo-lirr-1.20864637 |access-date=September 7, 2018 |website=am New York}}</ref> opening in June 2024<ref>{{cite web |last=Mocker |first=Greg |date=June 24, 2024 |title=Public plaza opens at Penn Station in NYC |url=https://pix11.com/news/local-news/manhattan/public-plaza-opens-at-penn-station-in-nyc/ |access-date=June 28, 2024 |website=PIX11}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Cole |first=Jacqueline |date=June 25, 2024 |title=$65M Penn Station promenade opens with restaurants, walking space and more |url=https://www.newsday.com/news/new-york/penn-station-promenade-cetp8chc |access-date=June 28, 2024 |website=Newsday}}</ref> as part of a $65 million project funded by Vornado.<ref>{{cite web |last=Small |first=Eddie |date=April 30, 2024 |title=Vornado spending $65M to spruce up area around Penn Station for commuters |url=https://www.crainsnewyork.com/real-estate/vornado-adding-new-pedestrian-plaza-expanded-sidewalks-around-penn-station |access-date=June 28, 2024 |website=Crain's New York Business}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Castillo |first=Alfonso A. |date=April 29, 2024 |title=Area around Penn Station undergoing $65 million revitalization |url=https://www.newsday.com/long-island/transportation/penn-station-remake-i7efvif9 |access-date=June 28, 2024 |website=Newsday}}</ref>

{{Clear}}

== Services ==
{{Railway diagram around New York City MkII}}
The station is served by 1,300 arrivals and departures per day, twice as many as there were during the 1970s.<ref name="awful">{{Cite news |last=Leonard |first=Devin |date=January 10, 2018 |title=The Most Awful Transit Center in America Could Get Unimaginably Worse |work=Bloomberg Business Week |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2018-01-10/the-most-awful-transit-center-in-america-could-get-unimaginably-worse |access-date=January 10, 2018}}</ref> There are more than 600,000 subway, commuter rail and Amtrak passengers who use the station on an average weekday,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Randolph |first=Eleanor |date=March 28, 2013 |title=Transplanting Madison Square Garden |url=http://takingnote.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/03/28/transplanting-madison-square-garden/ |access-date=January 8, 2016 |website=Taking Note}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Sciarrino |first=Robert |date=December 26, 2013 |title=How to squeeze 1,200 trains a day into America's busiest transit hub |url=http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2013/11/how_to_squeeze_1200_trains_a_day_into_americas_busiest_transit_hub.html |access-date=January 8, 2016 |website=The Star-Ledger |quote=...a transit hub that handles 650,000 people a day&nbsp;— twice as busy as America's most-used airport in Atlanta and busier than Newark, LaGuardia and JFK airports combined.}}</ref> or up to 1,000 every ninety seconds.<ref name="100th" /><ref name="encnyc" />{{rp|498, 891}} It is the busiest passenger transportation facility in the United States<ref>Empire State Development. [http://www.esd.ny.gov/Subsidiaries_Projects/MSDC/MSDCAboutUs.html "About Moynihan Station."] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160127200922/http://www.esd.ny.gov/Subsidiaries_Projects/MSDC/MSDCAboutUs.html |date=January 27, 2016 }}. Retrieved March 7, 2011.</ref> and in North America.<ref name="encnyc">{{cite enc-nyc}}</ref>{{rp|890–891}}
Beyond the subway entrances of the Penn Station, also the new iconic 7Av/33St entrance and the 7Av/34St entrance are open 24/7.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.mta.info/stations/penn-station |title=Penn Station |publisher=[[Metropolitan Transportation Authority]] |access-date=August 25, 2025}} </ref>

=== Operations ===
Penn Station currently operates in a hybrid mode, with some trains turning back at the station and others running through the station. Almost all Amtrak trains servicing the Northeast Corridor run through Penn Station in either revenue-to-revenue or revenue-to-non-revenue mode, while LIRR and NJT operate both turning trains and through-running trains.<ref name="WhitePaper2021">{{cite web |title=NY Penn Station Master Plan WHITE PAPER Through-Running |url=https://liamblank.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/WhitePaper.pdf |website=WSP; FXCollaborative |publisher=Amtrak; MTA; NJ Transit |date=April 2021 |access-date=August 25, 2025}}</ref> This hybrid regime is optimized for the peak commuter demand between the suburbs and Manhattan, with a highly-optimized operating plan for each railroad that results in unbalanced service.<ref name="WhitePaper2021" />

During the morning peak period, many commuter trains are "through-run" to storage yards after dropping off passengers, a mode of operation which requires the shortest station dwell times and helps achieve maximum throughput. Roughly one-third of LIRR trains arriving from the east between 6:00 AM and 10:00 AM continue on to the [[West Side Yard]], and a similar percentage of NJT trains arriving from the west continue on to [[Sunnyside Yard]] in Queens. The afternoon peak operation is similar but in reverse. The balance of daily trains turn at the station, either running back in revenue service or "deadheading" back to outlying termini to return for another trip or to await the next peak period.<ref name="WhitePaper2021" />

The following table summarizes peak hour train movements:<ref name="WhitePaper2021" />
{| class="wikitable"
|+ Current Train Movements in the Peak Hour at Penn Station
! Railroad
! AM Peak
! PM Peak
|-
! [[Long Island Rail Road|LIRR]]
|
* 64 LIRR trains arriving from Nassau and Suffolk counties and Queens turnaround in Penn Station
* 36 trains "run-through" to West Side Yard for mid-day storage where they are serviced and made ready for a later return trip
* 28 trains reverse direction in the station
|
* 89 LIRR trains depart Penn Station
* 35 trains run-through from West Side Yard
* 54 trains reverse direction in the station
|-
! [[NJ Transit Rail Operations|NJT]]
|
* 39 NJT trains arriving from New Jersey reverse direction in Penn Station
* 21 trains "run-through" to Sunnyside Yard for mid-day storage, servicing, and staging for the PM Peak service period
|
* 55 NJT trains depart Penn Station
* 19 trains run through from Sunnyside Yard
* 36 trains reverse direction
|-
! [[Amtrak]]
|
* 28 Amtrak trains operate through Penn Station including Northeast Corridor, Empire Corridor and Long-Haul inter-city services
* All trains run through Penn Station, either as revenue trains or to and from Sunnyside Yard
|
* 31 Amtrak trains operate through Penn Station including Northeast Corridor, Empire Corridor and Long-Haul inter-city services.
* All trains run through Penn Station, either as revenue trains or to and from Sunnyside Yard
|}
In summary, about 193 commuter trains turn around in Penn Station during the combined Peak service periods, and 111 commuter trains run-through to West Side or Sunnyside Yards. As both yards are at their practical capacity, any major increase in revenue-to-storage through-running would require major expansion of yard capacity.<ref name="WhitePaper2021" />

=== Intercity rail ===
==== Amtrak ====
[[File:The Crescent without its dining car.jpg|thumb|An Amtrak platform at Penn Station]]
Amtrak owns the station and uses it for the following services:
{{div col|colwidth=30em}}
* ''[[Acela]]'' to [[South Station|Boston]] (northern terminus) and [[Washington Union Station|Washington D.C.]] (southern terminus)
* ''[[Adirondack (train)|Adirondack]]'' to [[Montreal Central Station|Montreal]]
* ''[[Berkshire Flyer]]'' to [[Joseph Scelsi Intermodal Transportation Center|Pittsfield]]
* ''[[Cardinal (train)|Cardinal]]'' to [[Chicago Union Station|Chicago]]
* ''[[Carolinian (train)|Carolinian]]'' to [[Charlotte station (Amtrak)|Charlotte]]
* ''[[Crescent (train)|Crescent]]'' to [[New Orleans Union Passenger Terminal|New Orleans]]
* ''[[Empire Service]]'' to [[Albany–Rensselaer station|Albany–Rensselaer]] and [[Niagara Falls station (New York)|Niagara Falls, NY]]
* ''[[Ethan Allen Express]]'' to [[Union Station (Burlington, Vermont)|Burlington]]
* ''[[Keystone Service]]'' to [[Harrisburg Transportation Center|Harrisburg]]
* ''[[Lake Shore Limited]]'' to Chicago
* ''[[Maple Leaf (train)|Maple Leaf]]'' to [[Union Station (Toronto)|Toronto]]
* ''[[Pennsylvanian (train)|Pennsylvanian]]'' to [[Union Station (Pittsburgh)|Pittsburgh]]
* ''[[Northeast Regional]]'' to Boston or [[Springfield Union Station (Massachusetts)|Springfield]] (northern termini) and Washington D.C., [[Roanoke station (Virginia)|Roanoke]], [[Newport News Transportation Center|Newport News]], [[Richmond Main Street Station|Richmond]], or [[Norfolk station (Amtrak)|Norfolk]] (southern termini)
* ''[[Palmetto (train)|Palmetto]]'' to [[Savannah station (Amtrak)|Savannah]]
* ''[[Silver Meteor]]'' to [[Miami station (Amtrak)|Miami]]
* ''[[Vermonter (train)|Vermonter]]'' to Washington D.C. (southern terminus) and [[St. Albans station (Vermont)|St. Albans]] (northern terminus)
{{div col end}}
All except the ''Acela,'' ''Northeast Regional'' and ''Vermonter'' originate and terminate at Penn Station. Amtrak normally uses tracks 5–12 alongside New Jersey Transit and shares tracks 13–16 with the LIRR and NJ Transit.

=== Commuter rail ===
==== Long Island Rail Road ====
The following Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) services originate and terminate at Penn Station:

{{div col|colwidth=30em}}
* [[Babylon Branch]] to [[Babylon station|Babylon]]
* Belmont Park Branch seasonal service to [[Belmont Park station|Belmont Park]]
* [[Far Rockaway Branch]] to [[Far Rockaway station (LIRR)|Far Rockaway]]
* [[Hempstead Branch]] to [[Rosa Parks Hempstead Transit Center|Hempstead]]
* [[Long Beach Branch]] to [[Long Beach station (LIRR)|Long Beach]]
* [[Montauk Branch]] to [[Speonk station|Speonk]] and [[Montauk station|Montauk]]
* [[Oyster Bay Branch]] to [[Oyster Bay station|Oyster Bay]]
* [[Port Jefferson Branch]] to [[Huntington station (LIRR)|Huntington]] and [[Port Jefferson station (LIRR)|Port Jefferson]]
* [[Port Washington Branch]] to [[Port Washington station|Port Washington]]
* [[Ronkonkoma Branch]] to [[Ronkonkoma station|Ronkonkoma]] with connecting service to [[Greenport station|Greenport]]
* [[West Hempstead Branch]] to [[West Hempstead station|West Hempstead]]
{{div col end}}

All branches connect at [[Jamaica station]] except the Port Washington Branch. Jamaica station also connects to [[Airtrain JFK]] for service to [[John F. Kennedy International Airport]].

Normally, the LIRR uses tracks 17 to 21 exclusively and shares tracks 13 to 16 with Amtrak and NJT. The LIRR uses tracks 11 and 12 on rare occasions.

==== NJ Transit ====
[[File:NJ Transit Ticket Counter Penn Station NY.jpg|thumb|NJ Transit ticket counter]]
[[File:Two trains at NY Penn Station.jpg|thumb|A NJ Transit platform]]
The following [[NJ Transit Rail Operations]] (NJT) branches originate and terminate at Penn Station:
* [[Montclair-Boonton Line]] to [[Montclair State University station]], with connecting service west to [[Hackettstown station|Hackettstown]].
* [[Morris and Essex Lines]], consisting of the [[Morristown Line]] to [[Dover station (NJ Transit)|Dover]] via [[Morristown station|Morristown]] and the [[Gladstone Branch]] to [[Gladstone station (NJ Transit)|Gladstone]].
* [[Northeast Corridor Line]] to [[Trenton Transit Center|Trenton]]
* [[North Jersey Coast Line]] to [[Long Branch station (NJ Transit)|Long Branch]] and [[Bay Head station|Bay Head]]
* [[Raritan Valley Line]] to [[Raritan station|Raritan]] and [[High Bridge station|High Bridge]]

NJT normally uses tracks 1 to 4 exclusively, as these four tracks end at bumper blocks to their east. NJT shares tracks 5 through 12 with Amtrak, and occasionally uses tracks 13 to 16, which are shared with Amtrak and the LIRR.

=== Rapid transit ===
==== New York City Subway ====
Connections are available to the following New York City Subway stations:<ref>{{NYCS const|map}}</ref>
* From Penn Station:
** {{NYCS trains|Eighth south}} at [[34th Street–Penn Station (IND Eighth Avenue Line)|34th Street–Penn Station]], under Eighth Avenue
** {{NYCS trains|Broadway-Seventh}} at [[34th Street–Penn Station (IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line)|34th Street–Penn Station]], under Seventh Avenue
* From [[Herald Square]], one block east at [[Sixth Avenue (Manhattan)|Sixth Avenue]]:
** {{NYCS trains|Herald Square}} at [[34th Street–Herald Square station]], under Broadway & Sixth Avenue

==== PATH ====
Connections are also available to the [[PATH (rail system)|PATH]] system at [[33rd Street (PATH station)|33rd Street]] station, under Sixth Avenue on Herald Square. The [[JSQ-33]] and [[HOB-33]] services terminate at 33rd Street on weekdays, and are combined into the [[JSQ-33 (via HOB)]] service on late nights, weekends and holidays.

=== Bus and coach ===
==== New York City Bus ====
The following [[MTA Regional Bus Operations]] buses stop near Penn Station:<ref>{{Cite NYC bus map|M}}</ref>
* [[M7 (New York City bus)|M7]] (Lenox, Columbus, Amsterdam, Sixth and Seventh Avenues): southbound to [[Greenwich Village]], via Seventh Avenue; or northbound to [[Harlem]] via Sixth, Amsterdam, and Lenox Avenues
* [[M20 (New York City bus)|M20]] (Seventh and Eighth Avenues/Varick and Hudson Streets): northbound to [[Lincoln Center]] via Eighth Avenue; or southbound to [[South Ferry, Manhattan|South Ferry]] via Seventh Avenue
* [[M34 (New York City bus)|M34 Select Bus Service]] (34th Street Crosstown): westbound to [[Javits Center]]; or eastbound to [[FDR Drive]]
* [[M34A (New York City bus)|M34A Select Bus Service]] (34th Street Crosstown): westbound to [[Port Authority Bus Terminal]]; or eastbound to [[Waterside Plaza]] and [[Kips Bay, Manhattan|Kips Bay]]
* [[Q32 (New York City bus)|Q32]] (Fifth and Madison Avenues): northbound only, to [[Jackson Heights, Queens]]

==== Intercity coaches ====
[[Intercity bus service]] to and from Penn Station is provided by [[Vamoose Bus Service|Vamoose Bus]], Tripper Bus, and [[Go Buses]]. [[Vamoose Bus Service|Vamoose Bus]] runs buses from a stop near Penn Station to Bethesda, Maryland; Arlington, Virginia; and Lorton, Virginia.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Our Bus Stops&nbsp;— Vamoose Bus |url=http://www.vamoosebus.com/site/modules/routes/routes.aspx?fi=14 |access-date=January 9, 2015 |quote=Dropoff Locations: Penn Station, 7th Ave. Corner of W 30th Street}}</ref> Tripper Bus runs buses from a stop near Penn Station to Bethesda, Maryland and Arlington, Virginia.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Our Pick-Up and Drop-Off Locations&nbsp;— Tripper Bus |url=https://www.tripperbus.com/travel-info/pickup |access-date=January 30, 2019 |quote=Pick-Up Drop-Off Locations: Penn Station, NE corner of 31 St between 7th and 8th Ave}}</ref> [[Go Buses]] runs buses from a stop near Penn Station to Newton, Massachusetts and Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Most intercity and commuter bus services to and from midtown Manhattan use the [[Port Authority Bus Terminal]], located approximately 0.5 miles (0.8 kilometers) to the north of Penn Station.

=== Proposed Metro-North service ===
{{Main|Penn Station Access}}
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority plans to bring [[Metro-North Railroad]] commuter trains to Penn Station as part of its [[Penn Station Access]] project. The [[East Side Access]] project, which was completed in 2023, has freed up track and platform space at Penn Station by redirecting some LIRR trains from Penn Station to [[Grand Central Madison]]. This new capacity, as well as track connections resulting from the East Side Access project, will allow Metro-North trains on the [[New Haven Line]] to run to Penn Station via Amtrak's [[Hell Gate Bridge]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Metro-North Penn Station Access |url=http://web.mta.info/mta/planning/psas/pdf/PennAccess_MTAweb.pdf |access-date=July 20, 2017 |publisher=[[Metropolitan Transportation Authority]]}}</ref>

Four new local Metro-North stations in [[the Bronx]] are planned as part of this project, at [[Co-op City, Bronx|Co-op City]], [[Morris Park, Bronx|Morris Park]], [[Parkchester, Bronx|Parkchester]]/[[Van Nest, Bronx|VanNest]], and [[Hunts Point, Bronx|Hunts Point]]. The MTA also proposes a second service from the Metro-North's [[Hudson Line (Metro-North)|Hudson Line]] to Penn Station using Amtrak's [[West Side Line]] in Manhattan.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Metro-North Penn Station Access |url=http://web.mta.info/mta/planning/psas/pdf/PennAccess_MTAweb.pdf |access-date=July 20, 2017 |publisher=[[Metropolitan Transportation Authority]]}}</ref> The Penn Station Access project would provide direct rides from [[Connecticut]], [[Westchester County, New York|Westchester County]], the [[Hudson Valley|Lower Hudson Valley]], and the Bronx to West Midtown; ease reverse-commuting from Manhattan and the Bronx to Westchester County, the Lower Hudson Valley, and Connecticut; and provide transportation service to areas of the Bronx without direct subway service.<ref>{{Cite report |date=December 12, 2016 |title=MTACC Quarterly Progress Report to CPOC Penn Station Access Project Overview: December 12, 2016 |url=http://web.mta.info/mta/news/books/docs/Penn%20Station%20Access%20Project%20Overview.pdf |access-date=July 20, 2017 |publisher=[[Metropolitan Transportation Authority]] |archive-date=February 2, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170202042106/http://web.mta.info/mta/news/books/docs/Penn%20Station%20Access%20Project%20Overview.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref>

== Station layout ==
[[File:LIRR concourse 2003 renovation.png|thumb|Long Island Rail Road concourse after renovation, 2023]]
[[File:New LIRR West End Concourse 2017-06 jeh.jpg|thumb|The West End Concourse]]

Penn Station does not have a unified design or floor plan but rather is divided into separate Amtrak, LIRR and NJ Transit concourses with each concourse maintained and styled differently by its respective operator.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Station Directory – Penn Station, NY |url=https://www.njtransit.com/pdf/rail/NYPENN_Directory.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180730191846/https://www.njtransit.com/pdf/rail/NYPENN_Directory.pdf |archive-date=July 30, 2018 |access-date=May 26, 2018 |publisher=NJ Transit}}</ref> The Amtrak and NJ Transit concourses are located on the first level below the street level while the Long Island Rail Road concourse is two levels below street level.<ref name="Krueger 2021">{{Cite web |last=Krueger |first=Alyson |date=June 5, 2021 |title=A Complete Guide to NYC's Penn Station |url=https://www.tripsavvy.com/a-complete-guide-to-nyc-penn-station-4584476 |access-date=August 10, 2021 |website=TripSavvy |language=en}}</ref>

Platform widths vary, with eight of the 11 platforms in the range of 19–20 feet wide. Platform 6 is the narrowest, at 17 feet, while Platform 1 is slightly wider, at 22 feet. Platform 10 is the widest platform, used exclusively by LIRR and nominally 38 feet wide.<ref name="WhitePaper2021" />

The main concourse, now primarily used by NJ Transit which was principally used by Amtrak until the opening of the [[Moynihan Train Hall]] in 2021, is at the west end of the station directly beneath Madison Square Garden.<ref name="Krueger 2021" /><ref>{{Cite news |last=Goldbaum |first=Christina |date=December 30, 2020 |title=New Train Hall Opens at Penn Station, Echoing Building's Former Glory |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/30/nyregion/moynihan-penn-station.html |access-date=August 10, 2021 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> It was created out of the original station's waiting rooms and main concourse, though few remnants of the original still exist in the space. It was renovated in the early 2000s in anticipation of ''[[Acela]]'' service and includes an enclosed waiting area for ticketed passengers with seats, outlets and Wi-Fi.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.amtrak.com/servlet/ContentServer?SnippetName=IBLegacy&pagename=am/AM_Snippet_C/SnippetWrapper&code=NYP|title=Amtrak – Stations – New York, NY – Penn Station (NYP)|website=amtrak.com}}</ref> The ticketed waiting room underwent a $7.2&nbsp;million renovation from 2019 to 2020 that was funded jointly between Amtrak and NJ Transit. The renovation included new furniture and fixtures that feature seats with electrical and USB outlets, an upgraded ceiling with new LED lighting, a new information desk, a second entrance in close proximity to the NJ Transit concourse that provides improved access towards the Seventh Avenue side of the Station, two new Passenger Information Display Systems boards that display NJ Transit departure information and a lactation suite for nursing mothers.<ref>{{Cite web |date=November 20, 2020 |title=NJ Transit and Amtrak Complete the Refresh of the Ticketed Waiting Area at New York Penn Station |url=https://www.njtransit.com/press-releases/nj-transit-and-amtrak-complete-refresh-ticketed-waiting-area-new-york-penn-station |access-date=April 11, 2023 |website=njtransit.com}}</ref>

The LIRR's connecting concourse runs below West 33rd Street between Seventh and Eighth Avenues, as it has since the original station opened in 1910.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Vantuono |first=Willian |date=December 31, 2020 |title=LIRR East End Gateway Opens |url=https://www.railwayage.com/passenger/commuterregional/lirr-east-end-gateway-opens/ |access-date=August 11, 2021 |website=Railway Age |publisher=Simmons-Boardman Publishing Inc. |language=en-US}}</ref> Significant renovations were made to the LIRR areas over a three-year period ending in 1994,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Castillo |first=Afonso A. |date=July 1, 2012 |title=LIRR plans major Penn Station makeover |url=https://www.newsday.com/long-island/transportation/lirr-plans-major-penn-station-makeover-1.3816806 |url-status=dead |access-date=August 11, 2021 |website=Newsday |language=en |archive-date=April 19, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210419235618/https://www.newsday.com/long-island/transportation/lirr-plans-major-penn-station-makeover-1.3816806 }}</ref> including the opening of the Central Corridor passageway and the addition of a new entry pavilion on 34th Street.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Schaer |first=Sidney C. |date=October 23, 1994 |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/newsday-nassau-edition-as-lirr-renovat/159391798/ |access-date=November 19, 2024 |title=As LIRR Renovation Ends, Who's Laughing Now? |work=Newsday}}</ref><ref name="NYT 1995 g446"/> The 34th Street entry pavilion measures {{convert|40|by|50|ft}} across by {{convert|92|ft}} tall and has a glass tower and two air-cooling shafts.<ref name="NYT 1995 g446">{{cite web | title=POSTINGS: For the Dashing Commuter; L.I.R.R. Finishing 34th St. Pavilion | website=The New York Times | date=January 8, 1995 | url=https://www.nytimes.com/1995/01/08/realestate/postings-for-the-dashing-commuter-lirr-finishing-34th-st-pavilion.html | access-date=November 20, 2024}}</ref> The West End Concourse, west of Eighth Avenue, opened in 1986,<ref name="Washington" /> and was widened and lengthened to cover tracks 5 through 21 in 2017.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Warerkar |first=Tanay |date=June 15, 2017 |title=Penn Station's West End Concourse finally opens to the public |url=https://ny.curbed.com/2017/6/15/15807744/penn-station-west-end-concourse-post-office |access-date=February 15, 2021 |website=Curbed NY}}</ref>

The NJ Transit concourse near Seventh Avenue opened in 2002 out of existing retail and Amtrak office space.<ref>{{Cite press release |title=Commissioner Fox Unveils New 7th Avenue Concourse at Penn Station N.Y. |date=September 18, 2002 |publisher=NJ Transit |url=http://www.njtransit.com/tm/tm_servlet.srv?hdnPageAction=PressReleaseTo&PRESS_RELEASE_ID=535 |access-date=January 16, 2010 |archive-date=October 9, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071009171535/http://www.njtransit.com/tm/tm_servlet.srv?hdnPageAction=PressReleaseTo&PRESS_RELEASE_ID=535 |url-status=dead }}</ref> A new street-level entrance to this concourse at the corner of 31st Street and Seventh Avenue opened in September 2009.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Fahim |first=Kareem |date=November 6, 2006 |title=New Penn Station Entrance Is Planned by N.J. Transit |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/10/nyregion/10transit.html |access-date=July 18, 2009}}</ref> Previously, NJ Transit used space in the Amtrak concourse.<ref>{{Cite web |date=August 31, 2009 |title=New street entrance to NJ Transit concourse opens at NY Penn Station |url=https://www.njtransit.com/press-releases/new-street-entrance-nj-transit-concourse-opens-ny-penn-station |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210813125959/https://www.njtransit.com/press-releases/new-street-entrance-nj-transit-concourse-opens-ny-penn-station |archive-date=August 13, 2021 |access-date=August 13, 2021 |website=NJ Transit }}</ref>

In December 2017, Amtrak and [[Zyter]] released a [[mobile app]] called FindYourWay to help commuters navigate around Penn Station, though Zyter also plans to roll out the app at other large Amtrak stations.<ref>{{Cite news |last=McGeehan |first=Patrick |date=December 13, 2017 |title=Lost in Penn Station? Amtrak Has an App to Guide You |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/13/nyregion/penn-station-amtrak-findyourway-app.html |access-date=December 17, 2017 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref>
The station's three providers use different official addresses for the station.
* Amtrak: 351 West 31st Street
* LIRR: 34th Street at 7th and 8th Avenues
* NJ Transit: 31st Street and 7th Avenue
<gallery mode="packed" heights="140px" perrow="8">
File:Blizzard of 2015- Empty Penn Station (16192638879).jpg|LIRR concourse in 2015
File:NewYorkPenn02LB.jpg|Amtrak concourse
File:LIRR East End Gateway 20210204 224316486.jpg|East End Gateway at 7th Avenue
File:Penn Station entrance.jpg|8th Avenue entrance
File:Moynihan Train Hall - Entrance (51878229291).jpg|Entrance in the Farley Post Office Building
</gallery>

{| class="collapsible collapsed" border=0 cellspacing=0 cellpadding=3
! colspan=2 style="text-align:center; font-size:88%" | {{resize|114%|Station layout}}
|-
|style="border-top:solid 1px gray;" width=50 valign=top|'''Above ground'''
|style="border-top:solid 1px gray;" colspan=2 valign=top|[[Madison Square Garden]]/[[Two Penn Plaza]]<ref name="layout">[http://web.mta.info/lirr/AlternateRoute/PennStation.htm "Penn Station"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190904142929/http://web.mta.info/lirr/AlternateRoute/PennStation.htm |date=September 4, 2019 }}, station layout, mta.info</ref>
|-
|style="border-top:solid 1px gray;" width=50 valign=top|'''G'''
|style="border-top:solid 1px gray;" width=100 valign=top|Street Level
|style="border-top:solid 1px gray;" width=400 valign=top|Exit/Entrance
|-
|style="border-top:solid 1px gray;" width=50 valign=top rowspan=2|'''UC'''
|style="border-top:solid 1px gray;" width=100 valign=top|Amtrak Concourse
|style="border-top:solid 1px gray;" width=400 valign=top|Amtrak tickets, transfer to [[34th Street–Penn Station (IND Eighth Avenue Line)]] station; exit to 33rd Street, connection to Exit and Connecting concourses<ref name="layout" />
|-
|style="border-top:solid 1px gray;" width=100 valign=top|NJT Concourse
|style="border-top:solid 1px gray;" width=400 valign=top|NJT tickets, exit to 31st Street, connect to LIRR and Hilton concourses<ref name="layout" />
|-
|style="border-top:solid 1px gray;" width=50 valign=top rowspan=6|'''LC'''
|style="border-top:solid 1px gray;" width=100 valign=top|West End Concourse
|style="border-top:solid 1px gray;" width=400 valign=top|Amtrak/LIRR tickets, transfer to [[34th Street–Penn Station (IND Eighth Avenue Line)]] station; exit to 33rd Street, connection to Exit and Connecting concourses<ref name="layout" />
|-
|style="border-top:solid 1px gray;" width=100 valign=top|Exit Concourse
|style="border-top:solid 1px gray;" width=400 valign=top|Exit to 31st Street, connection to Hilton, West End, and Connecting concourses<ref name="layout" />
|-
|style="border-top:solid 1px gray;" width=100 valign=top|Hilton Corridor
|style="border-top:solid 1px gray;" width=400 valign=top|Exit to Seventh Avenue, connection to Exit, LIRR, Central, and NJT concourses<ref name="layout" />
|-
|style="border-top:solid 1px gray;" width=100 valign=top|Central Concourse
|style="border-top:solid 1px gray;" width=400 valign=top|Tickets, connection to Connecting and Hilton concourses<ref name="layout" />
|-
|style="border-top:solid 1px gray;" width=100 valign=top|Connecting Concourse
|style="border-top:solid 1px gray;" width=400 valign=top|Transfer to [[34th Street–Penn Station (IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line)]] station, connection to West End, LIRR, Central, and Exit concourses, to [[One Penn Plaza]] and [[34th Street (Manhattan)|34th Street]] at north end<ref name="layout" />
|-
|style="border-top:solid 1px gray;" width=100 valign=top|LIRR Concourse
|style="border-top:solid 1px gray;" width=400 valign=top|LIRR tickets, connection to NJT and Hilton concourses<ref name="layout" />
|-
|style="border-top:solid 1px gray;border-bottom:solid 1px gray;" width=50 rowspan=32 valign=top|'''P<br />Platform level'''
|style="border-top:solid 1px gray;" width=100|'''Track 21'''
|style="border-top:solid 1px gray;" width=400|{{0|→}} [[Long Island Rail Road|LIRR]] toward Long Island →
|-
|style="border-top:solid 2px black;border-right:solid 2px black;border-left:solid 2px black;border-bottom:solid 2px black;text-align:center;" colspan=2|{{small|[[Island platform]] (Platform 11)}}
|-
|style="border-bottom:solid 1px gray;"|'''Track 20'''
|style="border-bottom:solid 1px gray;"|{{0|→}} LIRR toward Long Island →
|-
|'''Track 19'''
|{{0|→}} LIRR toward Long Island →
|-
|style="border-top:solid 2px black;border-right:solid 2px black;border-left:solid 2px black;border-bottom:solid 2px black;text-align:center;" colspan=2|{{small|[[Island platform]] (Platform 10)}}
|-
|'''Track 18'''
|{{0|→}} LIRR toward Long Island →
|-
|style="border-top:solid 2px black;border-right:solid 2px black;border-left:solid 2px black;border-bottom:solid 2px black;text-align:center;" colspan=2|{{small|[[Island platform]] (Platform 9); Track 17 only}}
|-
|style="border-bottom:solid 1px gray;"|'''Track 17'''
|style="border-bottom:solid 1px gray;"|{{0|→}} LIRR toward Long Island →
|-
|'''Track 16'''
|← [[Amtrak]]/[[NJ Transit Rail Operations|NJ Transit]]/LIRR →
|-
|style="border-top:solid 2px black;border-right:solid 2px black;border-left:solid 2px black;border-bottom:solid 2px black;text-align:center;" colspan=2|{{small|[[Island platform]] (Platform 8)}}
|-
|style="border-bottom:solid 1px gray;"|'''Track 15'''
|style="border-bottom:solid 1px gray;"|← Amtrak/NJ Transit/LIRR →
|-
|'''Track 14'''
|← Amtrak/NJ Transit/LIRR →
|-
|style="border-top:solid 2px black;border-right:solid 2px black;border-left:solid 2px black;border-bottom:solid 2px black;text-align:center;" colspan=2|{{small|[[Island platform]] (Platform 7)}}
|-
|style="border-bottom:solid 1px gray;"|'''Track 13'''
|style="border-bottom:solid 1px gray;"|← Amtrak/NJ Transit/LIRR →
|-
|'''Track 12'''
|← Amtrak/NJ Transit/LIRR →
|-
|style="border-top:solid 2px black;border-right:solid 2px black;border-left:solid 2px black;border-bottom:solid 2px black;text-align:center;" colspan=2|{{small|[[Island platform]] (Platform 6)}}
|-
|style="border-bottom:solid 1px gray;"|'''Track 11'''
|style="border-bottom:solid 1px gray;"|← Amtrak/NJ Transit →
|-
|'''Track 10'''
|← Amtrak/NJ Transit →
|-
|style="border-top:solid 2px black;border-right:solid 2px black;border-left:solid 2px black;border-bottom:solid 2px black;text-align:center;" colspan=2|{{small|[[Island platform]] (Platform 5)}}
|-
|style="border-bottom:solid 1px gray;"|'''Track 9'''
|style="border-bottom:solid 1px gray;"|← Amtrak/NJ Transit →
|-
|'''Track 8'''
|← Amtrak/NJ Transit →
|-
|style="border-top:solid 2px black;border-right:solid 2px black;border-left:solid 2px black;border-bottom:solid 2px black;text-align:center;" colspan=2|{{small|[[Island platform]] (Platform 4)}}
|-
|style="border-bottom:solid 1px gray;"|'''Track 7'''
|style="border-bottom:solid 1px gray;"|← Amtrak/NJ Transit →
|-
|'''Track 6'''
|← Amtrak/NJ Transit →
|-
|style="border-top:solid 2px black;border-right:solid 2px black;border-left:solid 2px black;border-bottom:solid 2px black;text-align:center;" colspan=2|{{small|[[Island platform]] (Platform 3)}}
|-
|style="border-bottom:solid 1px gray;"|'''Track 5'''
|style="border-bottom:solid 1px gray;"|← Amtrak/NJ Transit
|-
|'''Track 4'''
|← NJ Transit toward New Jersey
|-
|style="border-top:solid 2px black;border-right:solid 2px black;border-left:solid 2px black;border-bottom:solid 2px black;text-align:center;" colspan=2|{{small|[[Island platform]] (Platform 2)}}
|-
|style="border-bottom:solid 1px gray;"|'''Track 3'''
|style="border-bottom:solid 1px gray;"|← NJ Transit toward New Jersey
|-
|'''Track 2'''
|← NJ Transit toward New Jersey
|-
|style="border-top:solid 2px black;border-right:solid 2px black;border-left:solid 2px black;border-bottom:solid 2px black;text-align:center;" colspan=2|{{small|[[Island platform]] (Platform 1)}}
|-
|style="border-bottom:solid 1px gray;"|'''Track 1'''
|style="border-bottom:solid 1px gray;"|← NJ Transit toward New Jersey
|}

=== Tracks and surrounding infrastructure ===
{{Pennsylvania Station (New York City)}}
Penn Station is configured with 11 platforms, 21 tracks, and four interlockings.<ref name="WhitePaper2021" /> The station's platforms and tracks are numbered from south to north.<ref name="WhitePaper2021" /> Tracks 1–4 are stub-end tracks ending at the eastern end of the platform and are used exclusively by NJ Transit, as they do not connect to the East River Tunnels.<ref name=AmtrakNYPTrackMap /><ref name="WhitePaper2021" /> The remaining tracks 5 through 21 are through tracks with connections at both ends.<ref name="WhitePaper2021" /> In normal operations, Amtrak and NJ Transit share tracks 5–12, all three railroads share tracks 13–16, and the LIRR has the exclusive use of tracks 17–21 on the north side of the station.<ref>{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oSjNk9ObuMU |title=Metro-North/LIRR Committee Meeting |date=April 24, 2017 |type=Board meeting |time=15:45 |access-date=April 29, 2017 |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211107/oSjNk9ObuMU |archive-date=November 7, 2021 |url-status=live |people=Nowakowski, Patrick}}{{cbignore}}</ref><ref name="Long Island Rail Road Timetable 2012" />

The station is accessed via seven single-track tunnels: two [[North River Tunnels]] under the Hudson River, four [[East River Tunnels]] under the East River, and one shorter [[Empire Connection|Empire Tunnel]] under the West Side of Manhattan. Each under-river tunnel is approximately 3 miles long, while the Empire Tunnel is approximately 0.3 miles long.<ref name="WhitePaper2021" /> The interlockings that control the station complex are designated 'A', 'C', 'JO', and 'KN'. On the west side of the station, 'A' and 'KN' interlockings route trains to and from the North River Tunnels, the Empire Tunnel, and the West Side Yard. On the east side, two interlockings ('C' and 'JO') route trains to and from the four East River tunnels; each interlocking connects two of the tunnel tracks to only 17 of the 21 platform tracks, as tracks 1-4 do not connect to the east.<ref name="WhitePaper2021" />

From the east, the East River Tunnels' lines 1 and 2 (the more southerly tubes) can only access tracks 5–17 and are used by most Amtrak and NJ Transit trains, while the East River Tunnels' lines 3 and 4 (the more northerly tubes) can only access tracks 14–21 and are mostly used by LIRR. From the west, the North River Tunnels can access tracks 1–19, while the Empire Connection can only access tracks 1–9 and the LIRR's [[West Side Yard]] can only access tracks 10–21.<ref name=AmtrakNYPTrackMap /><!-- this reference is defined in [[Template:NYP track map]] -->

All station tracks are powered by 12 kV [[overhead wire]]. Tracks 5–21 also have 750 [[Volt|V]] [[Direct current|DC]] [[third rail]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=February 22, 2016 |title=Amtrak Northeast Corridor Employee Timetable No. 6 |url=https://dms.ntsb.gov/public/59500-59999/59509/599688.pdf |access-date=April 29, 2017 |website=[[National Transportation Safety Board]] Docket Management System |page=72}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=May 14, 2012 |title=Long Island Rail Road Timetable No. 4 |url=http://www.trainsarefun.com/lirr/lirrhistoricaldata/LIRRTimeTable4_5-14-2012.pdf |access-date=April 29, 2017 |page=I-59}}</ref> Due to the lack of proper ventilation in the tunnels and station, only electric locomotives and [[dual-mode locomotive]]s are scheduled to enter Penn Station.<ref>{{Cite web |date=February 22, 2016 |title=Amtrak Northeast Corridor Employee Timetable No. 6 |url=https://dms.ntsb.gov/public/59500-59999/59509/599688.pdf |access-date=April 29, 2017 |website=[[National Transportation Safety Board]] Docket Management System |page=209}}</ref> Diesel-only NJT trains terminate at Hoboken Terminal or [[Pennsylvania Station (Newark)|Newark Penn Station]], and diesel-only LIRR trains terminate at or prior to [[Long Island City (LIRR station)|Long Island City]]. The established throughput capacity of the tunnels is 24-25 trains per hour in each direction for the North River Tunnels and 20-21 trains per hour in the peak direction for the East River Tunnels.<ref name="WhitePaper2021" />

Trains on track 18 open their doors only on the north side (platform 10).<ref name="Long Island Rail Road Timetable 2012">{{Cite web |date=May 14, 2012 |title=Long Island Rail Road Timetable No. 4 |url=http://www.trainsarefun.com/lirr/lirrhistoricaldata/LIRRTimeTable4_5-14-2012.pdf |access-date=April 29, 2017 |page=I-81}}</ref>

==== 2017–2018 service disruptions and track improvements ====
Since the early 2010s, Amtrak had planned to fix the deteriorating rails and infrastructure around Penn Station, but due to the prioritization of other projects, applied only minimal fixes.<ref>{{Cite news |last=LaForgia |first=Michael |date=October 9, 2017 |title=Before Derailments at Penn Station, Competing Priorities Led to Disrepair |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/09/nyregion/amtrak-penn-station-derailments.html |access-date=October 9, 2017 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> In early 2017, this culminated in numerous power outages, derailments, and delays due to track maintenance delays. There were frequent service disruptions to train schedules caused by the deterioration of its tracks and their supporting infrastructure, as well as in those of the East River and North River tunnels that respectively connect the station to Long Island and New Jersey.<ref name="Fitzsimmons & Corasaniti 2017">{{Cite news |last1=Fitzsimmons |first1=Emma G. |last2=Corasaniti |first2=Nick |date=April 6, 2017 |title=Amtrak Knew of Flaw That Caused Penn Station Derailment |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/06/nyregion/penn-station-train-service.html |access-date=April 28, 2017 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref>

A string of early 2017 service disruptions started on March 23, 2017, when an ''Acela'' train derailed, causing delays for the day.<ref name="Fitzsimmons & McGeehan April 25, 2017">{{Cite news |last1=Fitzsimmons |first1=Emma G. |last2=McGeehan |first2=Patrick |date=April 25, 2017 |title=Amtrak Said to Weigh Extended Track Closings for Penn Station Repairs |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/25/nyregion/penn-station-repairs-amtrak.html |access-date=April 28, 2017 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> On April 3, a NJ Transit train derailed at a known problem site, where repairs had been deferred.<ref name="Fitzsimmons & Corasaniti 2017" /> This caused four days of reduced service along the Northeast Corridor for both Amtrak and NJ Transit, because the incident damaged the switch that connects Tracks 1–8 to the North River tunnels.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Rubinstein |first=Dana |date=May 5, 2014 |title=Clock ticking on Hudson crossings, Amtrak warns |work=Capital |url=http://www.capitalnewyork.com/article/city-hall/2014/05/8544757/clock-ticking-hudson-crossings-amtrak-warns |url-status=dead |access-date=May 20, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140510062536/http://www.capitalnewyork.com/article/city-hall/2014/05/8544757/clock-ticking-hudson-crossings-amtrak-warns |archive-date=May 10, 2014}}</ref> This closure caused a [[cascading failure]], delaying Amtrak and Long Island Rail Road trains on the unaffected tracks.<ref name="Fitzsimmons & McGeehan April 25, 2017" /><ref>{{Cite news |title=Rail officials say derailment disruptions could last days |language=en-US |work=AP News |url=https://apnews.com/2b1ec6d5990849099565f63fe0fd73a9 |access-date=April 28, 2017}}</ref>

On April 14, a New Jersey Transit train became stuck in the North River tunnels, causing the station to grow crowded with waiting passengers. After an Amtrak police officer used a [[Taser]] on a man who was acting disruptively, rumors of gunshots sparked a stampede that injured 16 people.<ref>{{Cite news |date=April 15, 2017 |title=Penn Station stampede: 16 injured in chaos amid false reports of gun shots |language=en-US |publisher=Fox News |url=https://www.foxnews.com/us/penn-station-stampede-16-injured-in-chaos-amid-false-reports-of-gun-shots/ |access-date=April 29, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=April 23, 2017 |title=Schumer: Boost communication after Penn Station stampede |url=http://pix11.com/2017/04/23/schumer-boost-communication-after-penn-station-stampede/ |access-date=April 28, 2017 |website=New York's PIX11 / WPIX-TV |archive-date=October 22, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201022181027/http://pix11.com/2017/04/23/schumer-boost-communication-after-penn-station-stampede/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> Following the stampede, U.S. Senator [[Chuck Schumer]] called on Amtrak to centralize law enforcement response.<ref name="Fitzsimmons & McGeehan April 27, 2017">{{Cite news |last1=Fitzsimmons |first1=Emma G. |last2=McGeehan |first2=Patrick |date=April 27, 2017 |title=Amtrak Plans to Close Several Penn Station Tracks for Major Repairs |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/27/nyregion/amtrak-penn-station-repairs.html |access-date=April 29, 2017 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref>

As a result of these incidents, the Long Island Rail Road had proposed taking over Penn Station from Amtrak to improve maintenance,<ref>{{Cite news |title=LIRR mulls suing Amtrak over Penn Station derailments |work=News 12 Long Island |url=http://longisland.news12.com/news/lirr-mulls-suing-amtrak-over-penn-station-derailments-1.13517053 |url-status=dead |access-date=April 28, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170429104631/http://longisland.news12.com/news/lirr-mulls-suing-amtrak-over-penn-station-derailments-1.13517053 |archive-date=April 29, 2017}}</ref> and New Jersey has suggested withholding state payments to Amtrak.<ref name="Fitzsimmons & McGeehan April 25, 2017" /> Amtrak has discussed accelerating major maintenance work, even at the cost of further disruptions, to more quickly stabilize infrastructure and decrease more future incidents that could potentially cause even greater disruption.<ref name="Fitzsimmons & McGeehan April 25, 2017" />

On April 28, 2017, Amtrak announced that it would perform some track maintenance during the summer<ref name="Fitzsimmons & McGeehan April 27, 2017" /> over a period of one and a half months.<ref>{{Cite news |last=McGeehan |first=Patrick |date=May 2, 2017 |title=Amtrak's Plan for Penn Station Repairs Calls for 44 Days of Closed Tracks |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/02/nyregion/amtrak-penn-station-repairs-track-closings.html |access-date=May 2, 2017 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> Five tracks were closed for repairs as part of the reconstruction work, severely reducing track capacity in a situation media outlets deemed "the summer of hell".<ref>{{Cite news |last=McGeehan |first=Patrick |date=September 1, 2017 |title=Summer Was Not So Hellish for Commuters at Penn Station |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/01/nyregion/summer-was-not-so-hellish-for-commuters-at-penn-station.html |access-date=September 5, 2017 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Saul |first=Emily |date=July 9, 2017 |title='Summer of Hell' at Penn Station kicks off this week |url=https://nypost.com/2017/07/09/summer-of-hell-at-penn-station-kicks-off-this-week/ |access-date=September 5, 2017 |website=New York Post}}</ref> Many affected NJ Transit passengers were diverted to take the PATH instead.<ref>{{Cite news |last=McGeehan |first=Patrick |date=August 3, 2017 |title=This Summer, PATH Is on the Big Stage |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/03/nyregion/path-new-york-commute-summer.html |access-date=September 11, 2017 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> Some Amtrak trains from the Empire Corridor were routed to Grand Central instead of Penn Station.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Coyne |first=Matt |date=June 12, 2017 |title=6 Amtrak trains to use Grand Central Terminal this summer |url=https://www.lohud.com/story/news/transit/2017/06/12/amtrak-grand-central-terminal/389719001/ |access-date=April 17, 2018 |website=lohud.com}}</ref> Regular service resumed on September 5, 2017.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Wolfe |first=Jonathan |date=September 5, 2017 |title=New York Today: 'Summer of Hell' Comes to an End |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/05/nyregion/new-york-today-summer-of-hell-comes-to-an-end.html |access-date=September 5, 2017 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=September 5, 2017 |title=Full service resumes at Penn Station after 8 weeks of repair work |language=en-US |work=ABC7 New York |url=http://abc7ny.com/traffic/full-service-resumes-at-penn-station-after-8-weeks-of-repair-work/2377347/ |url-status=dead |access-date=September 5, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170905124137/http://abc7ny.com/traffic/full-service-resumes-at-penn-station-after-8-weeks-of-repair-work/2377347/ |archive-date=September 5, 2017}}</ref>

Amtrak made further improvements to Penn Station's trackage in summer 2018. As a result, some Empire Corridor trains were rerouted again to Grand Central.<ref>{{Cite news |date=April 10, 2018 |title=Amtrak Announces Summer Infrastructure Renewal Work – Amtrak Media |language=en-US |work=Amtrak Media |url=https://media.amtrak.com/2018/04/amtrak-announces-summer-infrastructure-renewal-work/ |access-date=June 9, 2018 |archive-date=August 14, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220814003305/https://media.amtrak.com/2018/04/amtrak-announces-summer-infrastructure-renewal-work/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> The ''[[Lake Shore Limited]]'' and ''[[Cardinal (train)|Cardinal]]'' to Chicago were truncated or rerouted because of this work.<ref>{{Cite news |date=June 8, 2018 |title=New York-Chicago Direct Train Shuts Down for First Time in Over a Century |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/08/nyregion/the-lake-shore-limited-shuts-down-for-the-first-time-in-over-a-century.html |access-date=June 9, 2018 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref>

{{Midtown Manhattan subway cross section}}

== Planning and redevelopment<span class="anchor" id="Future"></span> ==
[[File:Penn Station LIRR Concourse.jpg|thumb|Passenger congestion in the LIRR concourse, 2016]]
Resurgence of train ridership in the 21st century has pushed the current Pennsylvania Station structure to capacity, leading to several proposals to renovate or rebuild the station, often characterized as correcting for the 1960s demolition of the original facility.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Wilson |first=Colleen |date=February 25, 2021 |title=NJ Transit to benefit from Penn Station expansion. Here are the details |url=https://www.northjersey.com/story/news/transportation/2021/02/25/nj-transit-benefit-penn-station-expansion-plan/4554373001/ |access-date=August 10, 2021 |website=northjersey.com  |language=en-US}}</ref>

{{anchor|Alliance for a New Penn Station}}In 2013, the [[Regional Plan Association]] and [[Municipal Art Society]] formed the Alliance for a New Penn Station. Citing the limited capacity of the current station under Madison Square Garden, the Alliance advocated for limiting the extension of Madison Square Garden's operating permit to ten years.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Rubinstein |first=Dana |date=October 10, 2018 |title=Urbanists again aim to remake Penn Station and insist this time it will be different |url=https://politi.co/2pNOjQp |access-date=January 19, 2019 |website=Politico PRO}}</ref> In May 2013, four architecture firms released concepts for redeveloping Penn Station without Madison Square Garden above it, by moving the Garden to other locations on the west side.<ref name="nycurbed 20130529">{{Cite web |last=Alberts |first=Hana R. |date=May 29, 2013 |title=Four Plans For A New Penn Station Without MSG, Revealed! |url=http://ny.curbed.com/archives/2013/05/29/four_plans_for_a_new_penn_station_without_msg_revealed.php |access-date=October 26, 2014 |website=[[Curbed]]}}</ref> Madison Square Garden officials called the plans "pie-in-the-sky",<ref name="nycurbed 20130529" /> but on July 24, 2013, the New York City Council voted 47–1 to give the Garden a ten-year operating permit, after which the owners would have to move or seek permission anew.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Randolph |first=Eleanor |date=June 2013 |title=Bit by Bit, Evicting Madison Square Garden |work=The New York Times |url=http://takingnote.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/06/27/bit-by-bit-evicting-madison-square-garden/ |access-date=July 8, 2013}}</ref>

In January 2016, at the same time he announced the development of [[Moynihan Train Hall]], New York governor [[Andrew Cuomo]] announced that requests for proposals would be solicited for the redevelopment of the station under the Garden, which would be a public-private partnership called the Empire Station Complex. Investors would be granted commercial rights to the station in exchange for paying building costs.<ref name="cumorfp">{{Cite news |last=Higgs |first=Larry |date=January 6, 2016 |title=Gov. Cuomo unveils grand plan to rebuild N.Y. Penn Station |work=The Star-Ledger |url=http://www.nj.com/traffic/index.ssf/2016/01/cuomo_kick_starts_moynihan_station_plan_to_free_sp.html |access-date=January 6, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=6th Proposal of Governor Cuomo's 2016 Agenda: Transform Penn Station and Farley Post Office Building Into a World-Class Transportation Hub |url=https://www.governor.ny.gov/news/6th-proposal-governor-cuomos-2016-agenda-transform-penn-station-and-farley-post-office-building |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180612142645/https://www.governor.ny.gov/news/6th-proposal-governor-cuomos-2016-agenda-transform-penn-station-and-farley-post-office-building |archive-date=June 12, 2018 |access-date=January 7, 2016 |website=Governor Andrew M. Cuomo}}</ref>

In June 2023, nearing the end of the ten-year permit granted in 2013, the MTA, Amtrak, and NJ Transit filed a report stating that Madison Square Garden was no longer compatible with Penn Station, saying, "MSG's existing configuration and property boundaries impose severe constraints on the station."<ref>{{cite news |title=MTA report says MSG and Penn Station are no longer compatible, fueling debate over the arena's future |first=Téa |last=Kvetenadze |url=https://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/ny-msg-penn-station-mta-compatibility-20230606-7iymxnmfsjcopg3wssiyounllm-story.html |newspaper=[[New York Daily News]] |date=June 6, 2023 |access-date=June 10, 2023}}</ref> On September 14, 2023, the New York City Council voted 48–0 to renew the operating permit for Madison Square Garden for five years, the shortest-ever granted by the city to the Garden.<ref>{{cite news |title= NYC officials set to give James Dolan five-year permit for Madison Square Garden — but battle over site is brewing |url=https://nypost.com/2023/09/14/nyc-officials-set-to-give-james-dolan-five-year-permit-for-msg-but-battle-over-site-is-brewing/ |work=[[New York Post]] |date=September 14, 2023 |access-date= September 14, 2023}}</ref>

=== Station reconstruction ===
In April 2021, MTA officials under governor [[Andrew Cuomo]] proposed two options to reconstruct the Penn Station building under Madison Square Garden, to be financed by the development of 10 new office and residential towers in the surrounding neighborhood. One concept would retain the existing two-level concourse; the other envisioned a taller single-level concourse with a multi-story glass atrium in the former midblock taxiway; both would improve passenger circulation and could demolish the [[Hulu Theater]] for a new Eighth Avenue entrance.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Guse |first=Clayton |date=April 21, 2021 |title=MTA leaders unveil shiny new vision for NYC's cramped, crowded Penn Station |url=https://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/ny-penn-station-master-plan-mta-20210421-4dtw6gavbbbtzoasp4qrdvan2y-story.html |access-date=April 22, 2021 |website=New York Daily News}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=April 21, 2021 |title=Here's What a Transformed NYC's Penn Station Will Look Like |url=https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/windowless-concourses-out-bright-atriums-in-plans-to-redo-nycs-penn-station-unveiled/3012800/ |access-date=April 22, 2021 |website=NBC New York}}</ref><ref name="6sqft202010422">{{Cite news |last=Gannon |first=Devin |date=April 22, 2021 |title=See what a renovated Penn Station could look like |url=https://www.6sqft.com/see-what-a-renovated-penn-station-could-look-like/ |access-date=June 10, 2021 |website=6sqft}}</ref> Opponents alleged the tower development would disproportionately benefit real-estate firm [[Vornado Realty Trust]], which would develop several new towers without paying property taxes.<ref name="Siff 2022" /><ref name="Sommerfeldt 2022">{{Cite news|last=Sommerfeldt |first=Chris |date=June 9, 2022 |title=Gov. Hochul forges ahead with NYC Penn Station redesign plan that stands to benefit major campaign donor |url=https://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/new-york-elections-government/ny-nyc-penn-station-redesign-plan-gov-hochul-20220609-ri7xkoo5dnhp7oiegnhrqthnoe-story.html |access-date=June 10, 2022 |newspaper=[[New York Daily News]]}}</ref>

In November 2021, after Cuomo resigned, governor [[Kathy Hochul]] attempted to advance reconstruction selecting the one-level concourse alternative and slightly reducing the size of the office tower development,<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Haag |first1=Matthew |last2=McGeehan |first2=Patrick |date=November 3, 2021 |title=With Cuomo Gone, Hochul Revises Plan for Penn Station |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2021/11/03/nyregion/penn-station-nyc-hochul.html |access-date=November 4, 2021 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Higgs |first=Larry |date=November 4, 2021 |title=N.Y.'s gov unveils new plan to redo Penn Station |url=https://www.nj.com/news/2021/11/nys-gov-unveils-new-plan-to-redo-penn-station.html |access-date=November 4, 2021 |newspaper=[[The Star Ledger]]}}</ref> and in June 2022 she announced a call for architects and engineers to submit preliminary designs.<ref name="Siff 2022">{{Cite news |last=Siff |first=Andrew |date=June 9, 2022 |title=Hochul Announces Major Step Toward NY Penn Station Revamp; Plan Faces Opposition |url=https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/hochul-announces-major-step-toward-modernization-of-ny-penn-station/3727614/ |access-date=June 10, 2022 |publisher=[[NBC News]]}}</ref><ref name="Higgs 2022">{{Cite news |last=Higgs |first=Larry |date=June 9, 2022 |title=Designs for reimagined N.Y. Penn Station due in July, but obstacles, objections remain |url=https://www.nj.com/news/2022/06/designs-for-reimagined-ny-penn-station-due-in-july-but-obstacles-objections-remain.html |access-date=June 10, 2022 |newspaper=[[The Star Ledger]]}}</ref> [[FXCollaborative]] was announced as designer that September with the assistance of [[John McAslan]].<ref>{{Cite news |last=Guse |first=Clayton |date=September 21, 2022 |title=Penn Station rebuild to be overseen by architectural firm behind London's King's Cross station, MTA says |url=https://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/ny-penn-station-architect-london-kings-cross-mta-20220921-cicu4ii5zjehjphqu2dpamj4ei-story.html |access-date=September 29, 2022 |newspaper=[[New York Daily News]]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Klein |first=Kristine |date=September 22, 2022 |title=FXCollaborative, WSP, and John McAslan + Partners to redesign Penn Station |url=https://www.archpaper.com/2022/09/fxcollaborative-wsp-john-mcaslan-partners-penn-station-transformation/ |access-date=September 29, 2022 |newspaper=The Architect's Newspaper}}</ref>

In February 2023, Vornado declared it would no longer invest in new office space due to lack of demand following the [[COVID-19 pandemic in the United States|COVID-19 pandemic]],<ref>{{Cite news|last=Chen|first=Stefanos|date=February 16, 2023|title=Developer Delays Penn Station Project, Citing Economic Conditions|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/02/15/nyregion/vornado-penn-station-project.html|access-date=May 24, 2025|work=The New York Times|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> and in June 2023 Hochul announced that Penn Station reconstruction would be "decoupled" from any office tower development.<ref>{{Cite news|last=McGeehan|first=Patrick|date=June 26, 2023|title=A New Penn Station Is Coming, With or Without Office Towers, Hochul Says|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/06/26/nyregion/hochul-penn-station-vornados.html|access-date=May 24, 2025|work=The New York Times|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> That same June, private developer ASTM North America unveiled an unsolicited alternate reconstruction plan, with both a 55-foot tall Eighth Avenue entrance and a 105-foot tall midblock atrium, which would be financed by private investment and government funding.<ref>{{Cite news|date=June 28, 2023|title=Private Firm Announces Competing Vision for Penn Station Redesign|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/06/28/nyregion/nyc-penn-station-plan.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250501002200/https://www.nytimes.com/2023/06/28/nyregion/nyc-penn-station-plan.html|archive-date=May 1, 2025|access-date=May 24, 2025|language=en|url-status=live}}</ref> In November 2024, the [[U.S. Department of Transportation]] provided a $72 million grant for design and engineering.<ref>{{cite web |date=November 13, 2024 |title=Penn Station renovations: $72 million federal grant on way, Sen. Schumer's office says |url=https://www.newsday.com/long-island/transportation/penn-station-renovations-upgrades-k9nvdvmx |access-date=November 18, 2024 |website=Newsday}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Simko-Bednarski |first=Evan |date=November 12, 2024 |title=Federal Transportation Dept. set to kick in $72M toward Penn Station renovations: Sen. Schumer |url=https://www.nydailynews.com/2024/11/12/federal-transportation-dept-set-to-kick-in-72m-toward-penn-station-renovations-sen-schumer/ |access-date=November 18, 2024 |website=New York Daily News}}</ref> In March 2025, another outside interest group, Grand Penn Community Alliance, unveiled their own classical-style reconstruction proposal aimed at appealing to the incoming Trump administration, which included moving Madison Square Garden across Seventh Avenue in a development deal.<ref>{{Cite news|last=McCarthy|first=Craig|last2=Troutman|first2=Matt|date=April 18, 2025|title='Grand' plan for Penn Station linked to Trump donor could give glimpse of NYC transit hub's future after fed takeover|url=https://nypost.com/2025/04/18/us-news/grand-plan-for-penn-station-linked-to-trump-donor-could-give-glimpse-of-nyc-transit-hubs-future-after-fed-takeover/|work=New York Post|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}}</ref>

In April 2025, Trump administration transportation secretary [[Sean Duffy]] announced the U.S. Department of Transportation would take over reconstruction from the MTA, claiming that it would save $120 million,<ref>{{Cite news|last=Chen|first=Stefanos|last2=McGeehan|first2=Patrick|date=April 17, 2025|title=Trump Administration Says It Will Take Over Renovation of Penn Station|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/17/nyregion/trump-penn-station-nyc.html|access-date=April 17, 2025|work=The New York Times|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | last=Brodsky | first=Robert | title=Duffy makes Amtrak lead in Penn Station renovation, rebukes MTA | website=Newsday | date=April 17, 2025 | url=https://www.newsday.com/long-island/transportation/penn-renovation-amtrak-mta-cujtyvqg | access-date=April 17, 2025}}</ref> and in May 2025 the Trump administration announced that former [[New York City Transit Authority]] president [[Andy Byford]] had been chosen to lead the reconstruction effort.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Chen|first=Stefanos|last2=Maag|first2=Christopher|date=May 23, 2025|title=Byford, Once New York's 'Train Daddy,' Set to Lead Penn Station Overhaul|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2025/05/23/nyregion/andy-byford-penn-station.html|access-date=May 24, 2025|work=The New York Times|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | last=Simko-Bednarski | first=Evan | last2=Kvetenadze | first2=Téa | title=Trump taps Andy Byford, NYC's 'Train Daddy,' to head Penn Station rebuild | website=New York Daily News | date=May 23, 2025 | url=https://www.nydailynews.com/2025/05/23/report-trump-taps-andy-byford-train-daddy-penn-station-overhaul/ | access-date=May 24, 2025}}</ref> In response to the federal takeover, Hochul said that New York State would no longer pay $1.3 billion that it had previously expected to contribute to the project.<ref>{{cite web | last=Dhaliwal | first=Naveen | title=Trump administration taking control of Penn Station renovation | publisher=CBS News | date=April 17, 2025 | url=https://www.cbsnews.com/newyork/news/penn-station-renovation-trump-administration/ | access-date=April 26, 2025}}</ref> Duffy announced later that year that work would begin in 2027 and that the project would cost $7 billion.<ref name="nyt 20250827">{{cite web |last=Taylor |first=Sri |date=August 27, 2025 |title=New York Penn Station $7 Billion Overhaul to Begin Work in 2027 |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-08-27/new-york-penn-station-7-billion-overhaul-to-begin-work-in-2027 |access-date=August 28, 2025 |website=Bloomberg.com}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=McGeehan |first=Patrick |date=August 27, 2025 |title=Penn Station Renovation Will Begin in 2027, Officials Say |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2025/08/27/nyregion/penn-station-renovation-2027.html |access-date=August 28, 2025 |website=The New York Times}}</ref> Documents publicized in late 2025 indicated that, in conjunction with the renovation, Amtrak was seeking proposals for the possible redevelopment of surrounding lots.<ref>{{cite web | last=Nessen | first=Stephen | title=Federal takeover of Penn Station could be Trojan horse for new Midtown skyscrapers | website=Gothamist | date=November 14, 2025 | url=https://gothamist.com/news/federal-takeover-of-penn-station-could-be-trojan-horse-for-new-midtown-skyscrapers | access-date=November 15, 2025}}</ref>

=== Gateway Program ===
{{Main|Gateway Program (Northeast Corridor)}}
The Gateway Program is the planned expansion and renovation of the [[Northeast Corridor]] between [[Newark, New Jersey]], and New York City to alleviate the [[traffic bottleneck|bottleneck]] under the Hudson River and allow for refurbishment of the existing [[North River Tunnels]]. Two new tunnels would add 25 cross-Hudson train slots during [[rush hour]]s and could connect to a 7-track, 4-platform terminal annex to Penn Station to its south.<ref name="GatewayPDF" /> Some previously planned improvements were also incorporated into the Gateway plan.<ref name="GatewayPDF">{{Cite web |date=February 2011 |title=Gateway Project |url=http://www.lautenberg.senate.gov/assets/Gateway.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130517075834/http://www.lautenberg.senate.gov/assets/Gateway.pdf |archive-date=May 17, 2013 |access-date=February 7, 2011 |publisher=Amtrak}}</ref><ref name="NYTimes-Gateway-2011">{{Cite news |last=McGeehan |first=Patrick |date=February 7, 2011 |title=With One Plan for a Hudson Tunnel Dead, Senators Offer Another Option |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/08/nyregion/08tunnel.html |access-date=February 9, 2011}}</ref>

The Gateway Program was unveiled in 2011, one year after the cancellation of the somewhat-similar [[Access to the Region's Core]] (ARC) project, and was originally projected to cost $13.5&nbsp;billion and take 14 years to build.<ref name="NYTimes-Gateway-2011" /> Construction of a "tunnel box" that would preserve right-of-way on Manhattan's West Side began in September 2013, using $185&nbsp;million in [[Climate resilience|recovery and resilience]] funding awarded after [[Hurricane Sandy]] in 2012.<ref>{{Cite web |date=November 6, 2013 |title=West Side Construction Project May Bring New Rail Tunnel Pathways To … |url=http://www.ny1.com/content/news/189300/west-side-construction-project-may-bring-new-rail-tunnel-pathways-to-hudson-river |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://archive.today/20131106164437/http://www.ny1.com/content/news/189300/west-side-construction-project-may-bring-new-rail-tunnel-pathways-to-hudson-river |archive-date=November 6, 2013 |access-date=October 26, 2017 |website=NY1.com}}</ref> In 2015, Amtrak said that damage done to the existing trans-Hudson tunnels by Sandy had made their replacement urgent.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Rouse |first=Karen |date=December 6, 2012 |title=Amtrak asks Congress for emergency funding for flood protection |work=The Record |url=http://www.northjersey.com/news/transportation/Amtrak_asks_Congress_for_emergency_funding_for_flood_protection.html |url-status=dead |access-date=November 12, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131213223146/http://www.northjersey.com/news/transportation/Amtrak_asks_Congress_for_emergency_funding_for_flood_protection.html |archive-date=December 13, 2013}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Goldmark |first=Alex |date=December 13, 2012 |title=Amtrak asks for subsidies in wake of Hurricane Sandy |url=http://www.marketplace.org/topics/life/transportation-nation/amtrak-asks-subsidies-wake-hurricane-sandy |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210824130017/https://www.marketplace.org/2012/12/13/amtrak-asks-subsidies-wake-hurricane-sandy/ |archive-date=August 24, 2021 |access-date=December 15, 2012 |publisher=Transportation Nation}}</ref> That year, Amtrak reported that environmental and design work was underway, estimated the project cost at $20&nbsp;billion, and said construction would last four to five years.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Higgs |first=Larry |date=May 5, 2015 |title=Take a ride inside the aging Hudson River train tunnels that would cost billions to replace (VIDEO) |url=http://www.nj.com/traffic/index.ssf/2015/05/inside_the_aging_cracking_hudson_river_train_tunnels_that_would_cost_billions_to_replace.html |website=The Star-Ledger |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150507013512/http://www.nj.com/traffic/index.ssf/2015/05/inside_the_aging_cracking_hudson_river_train_tunnels_that_would_cost_billions_to_replace.html |archive-date=May 7, 2015}}</ref>

A draft environmental impact statement was released in July 2017,<ref name="Bazeley 2017">{{Cite web |last=Bazeley |first=Alex |date=July 6, 2017 |title=The Hudson Tunnel Project is expected to cost $12.9 billion |url=https://www.amny.com/transit/hudson-tunnel-project-cost-projected-at-12-9-billion-1.13785636 |access-date=May 7, 2018 |website=am New York}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=July 6, 2017 |title=Price for New York-New Jersey rail tunnel rises to $12.9B |language=en |work=ABC News |url=https://abcnews.go.com/Lifestyle/wireStory/price-york-jersey-rail-tunnel-rises-129b-48474789 |url-status=dead |access-date=July 9, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170707143744/https://abcnews.go.com/Lifestyle/wireStory/price-york-jersey-rail-tunnel-rises-129b-48474789 |archive-date=July 7, 2017}}</ref> but the [[First presidency of Donald Trump|first Trump administration]] delayed consideration of it. Unblocking the project was a stated priority of the [[Presidency of Joe Biden|Biden administration]],<ref>{{Cite web |last=Ngo |first=Emily |date=November 16, 2020 |title=Schumer: Trump Holding Gateway 'Hostage,' but Biden Will Advance It |url=https://www.ny1.com/nyc/all-boroughs/transit/2020/11/17/schumer--trump-holding-gateway-program--hostage---but-biden-will-advance-massive-rail-project |access-date=December 30, 2020 |website=Spectrum News NY1}}</ref> and the project was approved in May 2021.<ref name="McGeehan 2021">{{Cite news |last=McGeehan |first=Patrick |date=May 28, 2021 |title=At Long Last, a New Rail Tunnel Under the Hudson River Can Be Built |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/28/nyregion/-gateway-tunnel-biden-support.html |access-date=May 28, 2021 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> Federal funding was included in the Biden administration's [[Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act|Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill]], which became law in November 2021,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Laing |first=Keith |date=November 10, 2021 |title=Gateway Tunnel Is in Line for Funds From Infrastructure Bill, Says Amtrak CEO |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-11-10/nj-ny-gateway-tunnel-in-line-for-boost-from-infrastructure-bill |access-date=December 2, 2021 |publisher=Bloomberg L.P.}}</ref> and Biden announced in 2023 that the federal government was committing as much as $11 billion of the $16.1 billion price tag,<ref>{{Cite news|last=Kanno-Youngs|first=Zolan|last2=McGeehan|first2=Patrick|date=January 31, 2023|title=Biden Offers Millions for New York Rail Tunnel, Courtesy of His Infrastructure Law|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/01/31/us/politics/biden-hudson-gateway-penn-station-amtrak.html|access-date=February 9, 2023|work=The New York Times|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|last=McGeehan|first=Patrick|date=November 3, 2023|title=New Phase of Gateway Tunnel Project in Hudson River to Begin|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/11/03/nyregion/gateway-tunnel-amtrak-hudson-river.html|access-date=November 5, 2023|work=The New York Times|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> with the states of New York and New Jersey splitting the
rest.<ref>{{Cite web |last=McGeehan |first=Patrick |date=July 5, 2022 |title=Hudson River Tunnel Project Moves Ahead as States Agree to Share Costs |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/07/05/nyregion/gateway-tunnel-hudson-river.html |access-date=August 4, 2022 |website=[[The New York Times]]}}</ref> Construction began in late 2023 and was underway as of 2025.<ref name="nyt-2023-09-11">{{Cite news |last=McGeehan |first=Patrick |date=September 11, 2023 |title=13 Years Later, Construction to Restart on Hudson River Rail Tunnel |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/09/11/nyregion/gateway-amtrak-tunnel.html |access-date=September 12, 2023 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref>

==== Advocacy and funding controversy ====
In August 2025, the editorial board of the ''[[New York Daily News]]'' reported that the [[Regional Plan Association]] received support from [[Amtrak]] to operate the Build Gateway Now coalition and contended that this compromised the group’s independence in debates over Penn Station and the Gateway Program.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Long-trusted nonprofit sells its independence to Amtrak, casting doubt on Penn Station views |work=New York Daily News |date=August 24, 2025 |url=https://www.nydailynews.com/2025/08/24/rpa-sells-out-to-amtrak-taking-railroads-money-to-promote-gateway-boondoggle-compromises-its-independence/ |access-date=August 25, 2025}}</ref> RPA’s fiscal year 2023 Form 990 discloses that this coalition work was supported by Amtrak, noting a grant of $350,000 for 18 months beginning in January 2022 and a renewed grant of $500,000 for 18 months beginning in January 2024, and it describes activities that include research, communications, and advocacy such as testifying at Gateway Development Commission board meetings.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Return of Organization Exempt From Income Tax, FY2023 Form 990 |publisher=Regional Plan Association |date=February 6, 2024 |url=https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/rpa-org/pdfs/FY2023-Form-990.pdf |access-date=August 25, 2025}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=The Gateway Program |publisher=Regional Plan Association |url=https://rpa.org/work/campaigns/build-gateway |access-date=August 25, 2025}}</ref> Amtrak documentation identifies RPA president Tom Wright as a co-chair of the Penn Station Working Advisory Group convened in 2024.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Penn Station Working Advisory Group Meeting Summary |publisher=Amtrak |date=September 17, 2024 |url=https://www.amtrak.com/content/dam/projects/dotcom/english/public/documents/ny-penn-station-working-advisory-group/penn-working-advisory-group-meeting-summary-091724.pdf |access-date=August 25, 2025}}</ref>

=== Southern expansion ===
In January 2020, Governor Andrew Cuomo unveiled a proposed southern annex to Penn Station, part of his vision for the Empire Station Complex. The annex would include eight additional tracks with four platforms and would involve demolishing the entire block bounded by 30th and 31st streets between Seventh and Eighth avenues, directly south of the existing station, as well as parts of the two blocks to the east and west.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Siff |first=Andrew |date=January 6, 2020 |title=Cuomo: 8 New Tracks to Be Added to NY Penn Station |url=https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/cuomo-8-new-tracks-to-be-added-to-ny-penn-station/2255408/ |access-date=January 7, 2020 |website=NBC New York}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Higgs |first=Larry |date=January 6, 2020 |title=Penn Station expansion will make getting to NYC easier, Cuomo says |url=https://www.nj.com/traffic/2020/01/penn-station-expansion-could-end-gridlock-blocking-nj-transit-trains-from-nyc.html |access-date=January 7, 2020 |work=[[The Star-Ledger]]}}</ref><ref name="Velkind" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=Hallum |first=Mark |date=January 6, 2020 |title=Empire Station complex plan includes big rail expansion for Penn Station: Cuomo |url=https://www.amny.com/manhattan/empire-station-complex-plan-includes-big-rail-expansion-for-penn-station-cuomo/ |access-date=January 26, 2020 |website=amNewYork}}</ref> The new tracks would connect to and take advantage of the new capacity provided by the Hudson River tunnels built as part of the [[Pennsylvania Station (New York City)#Gateway Program|Gateway Program]]. The necessity of new tracks has been debated by regional advocacy groups who suggest that service improvements to enable regional [[through-running]] could similarly boost capacity.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Hicks |first=Nolan |date=December 25, 2023 |title= Shelved Penn Station fixes could avoid $17 billion expansion — if transit agencies actually work together: Post investigation |url=https://nypost.com/2023/12/25/metro/shelved-penn-station-fixes-could-avoid-17b-expansion-docs/ |access-date=December 26, 2023 |website=New York Post}}</ref> This southern terminal, which would require federal approvals and could cost as much as $16.7 billion, has not proceeded;<ref>{{Cite news|last=Haag|first=Matthew|last2=McGeehan|first2=Patrick|date=July 21, 2022|title=The Penn Station $7 Billion Fix-Up Moves Ahead: Here's What to Know|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/07/21/nyregion/penn-station-redevelopment.html|access-date=February 9, 2023|work=The New York Times|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref name="Hicks 2024 c201">{{cite web | last=Hicks | first=Nolan | title=Amtrak Wants to Sell Us a Very Expensive Penn Station Expansion | website=Curbed | date=August 23, 2024 | url=https://www.curbed.com/article/amtrak-penn-station-expansion-through-running-gateway-tunnel.html | access-date=August 27, 2024}}</ref> in November 2021 Governor Kathy Hochul prioritized reconstruction of the current station above construction of a southern expansion, and in March 2025 she stated that she would no longer support demolition of the block.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Oreskes |first=Michael |date=March 20, 2025 |title= Hochul's Retreat on Penn Station Expansion, Will Spare Entire Block from Demolition |url=https://www.westsidespirit.com/news/hochul-s-retreat-on-penn-station-expansion-will-spare-entire-block-from-demolition-BD4360452 |access-date=March 22, 2025 |website=The Spirit}}</ref> In August 2025, Amtrak similarly said that it was abandoning the expansion idea in favor of reconstructing the existing station and exploring other capacity improvements such as through-running.<ref name="nyt 20250827"/>

== See also ==
* [[Pennsylvania Tunnel and Terminal Railroad]]
* [[Transportation in New York City]]

== References ==
=== Notes ===
{{notelist}}

===Citations===
{{reflist}}

=== Bibliography ===
{{Refbegin}}
* {{Cite book |last=Diehl |first=Lorraine B. |title=The Late, Great Pennsylvania Station |publisher=Stephen Greene Press |year=1985 |isbn=0-8289-0603-3 |location=Lexington, MA}}
* {{Cite journal |last=Johnston |first=Bob |date=January 2010 |title=Penn Station: How do they do it? |url=https://kalmbachhobbystore.com/product/trn100101 |journal=Trains |volume=70 |issue=1 |pages=22–29}} Includes track diagram.
{{Refend}}

== External links ==
{{Commons category}}
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{{amtrak web|NYP|New York Penn Station}}
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[[Category:NJ Transit Rail Operations stations|New York]]
[[Category:Pennsylvania Plaza|Station]]
[[Category:Railroad terminals in New York City]]
[[Category:Railway stations in Manhattan]]
[[Category:Railway stations in the United States opened in 1910]]
[[Category:Railway stations in the United States opened in 1968]]
[[Category:Railway stations located underground in New York (state)]]
[[Category:Skidmore, Owings & Merrill buildings]]
[[Category:Stations on the Northeast Corridor|New York]]
[[Category:Transit centers in New York City]]
[[Category:Transit hubs serving New Jersey]]
[[Category:Union stations in the United States]]