PHOTOS : © EMPIRE STATE DEVELOPMENT / COURTESY OF SOM / VALLEY
Station and protect the signal system from weather disruptions . The project also removed signal poles along the Hudson River , clearing the view for Amtrak passengers . In other improvements , new flashers , bells and gates were installed at 12 highway rail crossings between Poughkeepsie and Albany for improved safety .
A $ 368 million project is building grade-separated tracks dedicated to Amtrak service between Hell Gate Bridge and Penn Station in New York City . The work will help speed passenger trains through Harold Interlocking in Queens . The interlocking is the busiest passenger rail switch yard in North America , navigated each weekday by 136 Amtrak trains and 647 commuter trains .
A $ 91 million project is constructing a second track and installing a new signal system from the Livingston Avenue Bridge over the Hudson River at Albany and Troy to just west of Schenectady Station . This 17-mile section is the worst bottleneck on the Empire Corridor . Amtrak passenger trains and freight trains share a single track here , allowing trains to travel only in one direction at a time . Once completed in summer 2017 , the new track will allow trains to pass each other , rather than wait for a single rail line to clear .
A $ 50 million project at the Albany-Rensselaer Station in Rensselaer County is updating tracks , platforms , and the entire signal system there . The work , scheduled for completion in 2017 , adds a fourth passenger track that will accommodate long trains and let more trains into the station to ease delays .
A $ 23 million project , scheduled for completion in early 2019 ,
New Moynihan Train Hall housing both Amtrak and LIRR ticketing and waiting areas .
Amtrak . com
New 250,000 square foot Moynihan Train Hall , housing passenger facilities for the Long Island Rail Road and Amtrak .
will ease congestion and delays at Syracuse Station by upgrading two side tracks , increasing train speed limits , and upgrading the signal system through the area . The station is very close to CSX ’ s busy DeWitt Freight Yard , which causes conflicts between passenger and freight trains .
New York City ’ s Pennsylvania Station is set to undergo a substantial renovation and expansion — in order to be reborn as the Pennsylvania Station / Farley Complex in December 2020 .
In September 2016 , New York Gov . Andrew Cuomo revealed a fast-track plan to create a state-of-the-art train hall and retail space in the James A . Farley Building , also known as the General Post Office , on the west side of Eighth Avenue in Manhattan , across the street from Penn Station . The new Moynihan Train Hall , which will serve as Amtrak ’ s and Long Island Railroad ’ s future station , will include office space and restaurants along with shopping . The plan also calls for renovating Penn Station ’ s current underground passageways and platforms .
The highlight of the $ 1.6 billion Farley Building renovation will be a massive train hall beneath a one-acre glass skylight mounted on the building ’ s steel trusses . The new station will accommodate 30,000 Amtrak passengers and 230,000 Long Island Rail Road riders daily .
The reason for the overhaul is that 600,000 travelers and commuters currently move through Penn Station each day — triple the number it was designed to accommodate . The plan is designed to ease crowds within and traffic surrounding Penn Station , which also houses New Jersey Transit trains and two subway lines . Along with reducing vehicle congestion and pollution in the area , the project is expected to create thousands of new jobs and increase tourism .
For more information about New York State ’ s Empire Corridor projects , please visit DOT ’ s website at www . dot . ny . gov / programs / high-speed-rail / arr-rail-projects .
New York By Rail | 19