CONSTRUCTION is expected to begin by the end of 2027 on the New York Penn Station Transformation project according to US secretary of transportation, Sean Duffy, who has confirmed that Amtrak has been allocated a grant of $US 43m to jump-start the project.

Duffy was speaking at a press conference held last week at the Moynihan Train Hall adjacent to Penn Station, alongside Andy Byford, who was appointed as a special advisor to Amtrak for the project in May.

Byford, a former president of New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), has launched the process to appoint a master developer for the estimated $US 7bn project. The US Department of Transportation (USDOT) says the master developer will act as a key player in the public-private partnership (PPP) model selected to advance the project.

USDOT confirmed that the formal selection process will start by the end of October with selection due to be made by the end of May 2026. Preliminary design and securing approval under the National Environmental Policy Act will take place from summer 2026 to the end of 2027 when construction will commence. The $US 43m grant will support project development as well as obtaining planning consent for preliminary engineering work.

In parallel, the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) will begin an approximately 18-month Service Optimisation Study in October with the aim of identifying solutions to accommodate growing passenger traffic at Penn Station and in the surrounding region.

Byford told the press conference that he plans to the federal grant to improve the station efficiently, rather than rushing into a major expansion programme. He also said that through-running between NJ Transit and the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR), eventually including fellow commuter operator Metro-North, should be considered.

“The transformation of Penn Station must be much more than bricks and mortar,” he said. “It must be about making the station operationally sound, safe, clean and easy to navigate.”

Major station

New York Penn Station is the busiest railway station in the Western Hemisphere and handled over 12 million Amtrak passengers in fiscal 2024, nearly 18% of total Amtrak and nearly 45% of Northeast Corridor ridership. The station accommodates over 1000 daily Amtrak, NJ Transit, and LIRR train movements on 21 tracks.

The Trump administration ousted New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) from its role of leading the project earlier this year, citing Amtrak’s ownership of the station as the reason for appointing the national passenger operator to lead the programme, a move it says will save taxpayers money.

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