Welcome to the Penn Station Access project quarterly newsletter. Penn Station Access will bolster equity, regional connectivity, and reliability by providing a new transit option. Read on to learn more about recent progress, upcoming work, and community engagement efforts. For past newsletter issues, click here. For updates on specific areas along the project corridor where work will take place, sign up here.
Para obtener más información sobre los hitos recientes del proyecto y el trabajo próximo, haga clic aqui.
PSA Progress
Since you last heard from us in August, we’ve made significant headway with construction. The Design-Builder successfully installed Leggett Interlocking special Track 1 work components, enabling Track 1 to return to service on September 1, 2023, concluding the 6-month long-term outage. Additionally, the Design-Builder made notable progress constructing overhead catenary structures (OCS), drainage infrastructure at Leggett and Van Nest, and micropiles at the Eastchester Road and Bronxdale Avenue Bridges.
Left: Workers Excavate Trench For OCS Cables at Leggett, August 2023
Right: PSA construction workers install OCS portal at Leggett Interlocking, October 2023
Upcoming Work
The Penn Station Access project team is planning for a busy year ahead, commencing site preparation at Morris Park and Co-op City station areas, completing Leggett Interlocking, and advancing several major work elements.
Meet the Team
Following Tom McGuinness’s retirement in August 2023, MTA’s Jolyon Handler was selected as the new Project Executive for the Penn Station Access project. Jolyon brings 20 years of experience in construction management that he honed during his time working for Columbia University in the Project Controls & Administration Department and as the Senior Vice President of the Empire State Development Corporation. During his time with Empire State Development, Jolyon was the Deputy Project executive for the Javits Center Expansion project, and later worked on the Moynihan Train Hall project. This ignited his passion for the transit infrastructure of New York, leading to him joining the MTA in 2019 as the Project Executive for the East End Gateway and Long Island Rail Road Concourse Renovation project, improving passenger circulation and easing congestion while traveling to Penn Station. Jolyon is dedicated to the process of creating and administrating projects; working with a team, building consensus, and solving problems to bring innovative projects to fruition and is excited to bring Metro-North service to underserved Bronx communities.
Above: Project CEO Jolyon Handler (left) with MTA executives in Moynihan Train Hall, March 2023
Community Corner
The Penn Station Access project is dedicated to actively engaging with community members and local leaders. The project team provided a briefing to the Bronx-Westchester Community Council on September 21, 2023 and has been convening with Bronx Community Boards 2, 9, 10, and 11 throughout October and November to give construction updates, highlight street level impacts, and answer questions. In addition, we were invited by New York City’s Department of City Planning and New York City Council to attend the Bronx Metro-North Station Area Plan virtual Community Engagement Information Session and in-person Public Workshops for each of the station areas to engage with local residents face-to-face. To enhance the benefits brought by the Penn Station Access project, New York City’s Department of City Planning is conducting the Bronx Metro-North Station Areas Study, regarding the City’s plans to rezone the station areas, allowing new housing and job centers to be constructed. To stay up to date on these planning efforts, visit the Bronx-Metro North webpage.
Above: PSA project representatives at the Parkchester/Van Nest & Morris Park Public Workshop, October 2023
Transit History: All Aboard the Hell Gate Bridge |
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We’re thrilled that Metro-North trains will soon be connecting Bronx residents to the heart of Manhattan through the iconic Hell Gate Bridge. The Hell Gate Bridge is named after the water that it crosses, a part of the East River that became known for treacherous currents, and whirlpools. Early Dutch explorers called it Hellgat because of the dangers of sailing through the strait. The Hell Gate Bridge was designed by engineers Gustav Lindenthal and Henry Hornbostel, who also designed the Queensboro Bridge. Construction on the Hell Gate Bridge was completed in 1916 and it opened to passenger rail traffic on April 1, 1917. Today, the Hell Gate Bridge carries the Amtrak Northeast Corridor (NEC) over the East River in New York City, providing an all-rail route from Boston to Washington through New York City. Approximately 40 Amtrak Northeast Regional and Acela Express trains cross the bridge each day, as well as freight trains, offering customers scenic views of New York City’s skyline.
Left: Traveling cranes build out one half of the Hell Gate Bridge’s main arch from each shore, September 1915 Source: Library of Congress
Right: Hell Gate Bridge, November 2022 Photo Credit: Trent Reeves/MTA
Contact Us
Interested community members can now sign up for updates on specific areas along the project corridor where work will take place.
Website: http://new.mta.info/project/penn-station-access
Email: PSAOutreach@mtacd.org
Phone: 347-263-7837
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