The Trump administration Wednesday announced an ambitious timeline for the public-private partnership renovation of Manhattan's Penn Station, which will begin by soliciting a master developer by the end of October.
The U.S. Department of Transportation announced in April that the agency, along with Amtrak, would be taking over the $7 billion project. The move sidelined the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, which the administration said was "incapable of delivering major infrastructure on time or on budget." Amtrak owns the station, the nation's busiest transit hub that includes MTA subways and NJ Transit.
The DOT also announced at the time it would deliver the project as a public-private partnership.
Construction is set to begin by 2027, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said at a press conference Wednesday.
"We are going to move at the speed of Trump. This is not going top be a 20-, 30-year project," Duffy said. "This is actually about how do we move this more quickly, and more beautifully, through the process, so it's not your grandkids that are going to enjoy the work that we're doing now. You all are going to get to enjoy this great project."
The long-planned rehab will include a new commuter train hall, an open concourse and green space. It remains to be seen if Madison Square Garden will be moved.
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"Ladies and gentlemen, the steps to completely transform Penn Station starts today," said Andy Byford, the special advisor to Amtrak's board who's in charge of the project.
"I'm so happy to be back in New York," said Byford, who was head of the MTA from 2017 to 2020, where he earned the nickname "Train Daddy."
"This is where I want to be, and this is the project that I want to do," Byford said. "Everyone has an opinion on Penn Station and what should be done. It has been talked about for years. Others have tried, but we're confident that we will succeed."
Design work and an environmental review will follow the developer selection and construction will begin in 2027.
The DOT Wednesday also announced $43 million in federal grant funding to Amtrak "to jumpstart this aggressive schedule."
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, a Democrat, praised the federal takeover.
"One of the first things I raised with President Trump in January was the need to give New York City the beautiful Penn Station it deserves," Hochul said in a statement Wednesday. "Those conversations successfully secured federal funding in April to advance redevelopment, allowing us to reallocate over $1 billion for other critical projects. With Secretary Duffy now advancing this project and requesting design proposals, New Yorkers are one step closer to a station worthy of this great city."
Duffy also announced on Wednesday that the Trump administration is "reclaiming the management" of Union Station in Washington, D.C. to renovate it.
