WHY IT RATES: Those who heavily rely on the more popular Amtrak New York Penn Station routes can now return to the station as the trains are back and running following the completion of their summer infrastructure renewal work.—Jessica Zickefoose, TravelPulse Associate Editor
Amtrak has completed its summer infrastructure renewal work at New York Penn Station, allowing the Empire Service, Ethan Allen Express, Adirondack, and Maple Leaf trains to return to New York Penn Station on Tuesday, Sept. 4 as planned.
Since Saturday, May 26, these four trains that travel to and from Northern New York and Canada were running in and out of New York Grand Central Terminal to accommodate the track and infrastructure upgrades.
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“We are proud to announce that we’ve completed this renewal project on schedule and within budget,” said Scot Naparstek, Amtrak Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer. “As always, we want to thank our customers for their patience, our commuter partners for their continued cooperation and for the confidence both groups have in Amtrak to improve train reliability for customers traveling in, out and through New York City.”
All four trains operate daily and travel through the beautiful Hudson Valley on its way to or from four unique locations in the Northeast, depending on the train: Montreal, Niagara Falls, Toronto or Vermont. In Amtrak’s 2017 fiscal year, these four trains combined for a total of 1,678,000 passengers.
This summer’s work focused on critical reconstruction of three major railroad infrastructure assets in New York City: The Empire Connection, Spuyten Duyvil Bridge and Track 19 at New York Penn Station. The total cost of the summer renewal work is estimated between $45 and $50 million, which will keep this important infrastructure in a state of good repair for Amtrak and benefit New York State with an upgraded, state-of-the-art railroad.
Overall, Amtrak has invested more than $100 million on its Infrastructure Renewal Program at New York Penn Station since Summer 2017. The Infrastructure Renewal Program is one element of Amtrak’s plan to modernize stations, infrastructure and equipment on the Northeast Corridor.
SOURCE: Amtrak press release
