Work at NY Penn is cause of the summer schedule changes.

The first weeks of NJT's summer work program service changes has passed; the chaos many predicted has not materialized, and according to reporting by Larry Higgs for NJ Advance Media, Amtrak is making good progress on its track work at New York Penn Station. After two weeks of work -- one-fourth of the eight weeks of work planned for the program -- Amtrak says they're 25-30% done. A switch that was blamed for a July 6 derailment has been replaced; the only reported "glitch" in the work program involved a new track bed for Track 10 at Penn Station: the concrete had to be re-poured. The work has focused on the track switches that route trains coming through the two Hudson River "tubes" into and out of Penn Station's complex of 21 station tracks.

While Morris & Essex Lines passengers continued to grumble about being forced to use Hoboken at most times on weekdays, another contingent has the opposite gripe, according to another article by Larry Higgs. Most commuters on NJT's North Jersey Coast line use New York Penn and continue to enjoy normal service.  But a few Coast Line trains normally go to and from  Hoboken, and these trains have been terminated at Newark Penn Station during the summer work program.  Riders who used those trains now have to transfer at Secaucus to reach Hoboken, or use PATH from Newark, and they're not happy about it. And while diverted M&E riders get a bargain 50% fare for the duration of the work, aggrieved Coast Line riders have not been offered reduced fares.

NJT has published a handy online guide for M&E riders during the work program; it's available (PDF format) here.

This morning, for the first time, New Jersey Transit rerouted most inbound trains and all outbound trains on the Morris & Essex (M&E) Line into Hoboken.  That includes a few trains on the Gladstone Branch, although most trains on that line normally go to Hoboken.  Most Midtown Direct service to and from Penn Station has been suspended through September 1st, so Amtrak can perform major track work at Penn Station.  Other lines are not affected, nor are week-end schedules, and Montclair trains that normally operate to and from New York will continue to do so.

This writer and others had feared that forcing most M&E riders to change their commuting habits would cause large-scale disruption and chaos, at least when the service changes were introduced.  Instead, there were no major difficulties today, and the morning commute seemed to go smoothly.  That included connections to Manhattan, despite concerns that the extra peak-hour service operated by the Port Authority Trans-Hudson (PATH) line between Hoboken and 33d Street in Manhattan would be vastly insufficient to accommodate the extra riders who will be commuting through Hoboken for the next eight weeks. 

There are still a few early-morning trains on the M&E into Penn Station.  The last one this morning arrived there at 7:03 after originating at Millburn and stopping only at Maplewood, South Orange and Brick Church (and not Newark).  It was crowded for a train running on such an early schedule, but most riders got seats and few were forced to stand.  A large contingent of NJ Transit employees, including managers, were on hand at Hoboken to assist customers, while PATH employees were stationed at the main entrance to the PATH platforms to direct NJ Transit riders to other PATH employees who could check their tickets and allow them into the PATH system.  PATH and ferry operator NY Waterway are honoring NJ Transit tickets to Hoboken for the connection to Manhattan. 

At other locations, including South Orange, Maplewood, Summit and Broad Street Station in Newark, there were extra buses to take morning riders into the Port Authority Bus Terminal (PABT).  NJ Transit also provides regular bus service between Hoboken and the PABT on the #126 bus, where Hoboken tickets were also honored for the trip to Manhattan.

We expect that, as riders become familiar with the new arrangement, Hoboken operations will continue to go smoothly.  All riders must allow extra time to get to their destinations in Manhattan.  PATH trains are running every five minutes during peak-commuting time, and they are scheduled to take 14 minutes to get to 33d Street Station, actually located at 32d Street and Sixth Avenue.  There is a temporary ferry route to 39th Street operating during peak-commuting hours only, but it took 33 minutes by ferry and connecting shuttle bus to get to 42d Street and Eighth Avenue.   The #126 bus is scheduled to take 26 minutes to go from Hoboken to the PABT.

The Lackawanna Coalition has criticized NJ Transit for its unwillingness to consult us and the elected officials in our area, concerning the diversion of our trains from Penn Station to Hoboken.  According to NJ Transit's numbers, there is still enough capacity at Penn Station outside peak-commuting times to run M&E trains there, at least during mid-day and evening periods.  That would have made travel easier for some of our constituents.  NJ Transit had a plan, and they implemented it, whether we or anyone else believed that it could have been improved.  Still, they implemented their plan well, this morning's commute went smoothly, and our fear that the morning would be chaotic turned out to be unfounded.

If the operation goes as smoothly for the next eight weeks as it did this morning, our riders will do reasonably well.  We do not know if ridership today was lighter than expected because many regular commuters stayed off the trains, expecting today to be a chaotic experience, because they had scheduled a vacation this week, or because they decided to pay a higher fare and use another mode of transportation.  Still, the new service ran well, which minimized the loss of time for our New York riders.  Things certainly could have been worse.

M&E Discounted Ticket

As NJ Transit and the other railroads using New York Penn Station implemented their altered schedules on Monday, July 10, media coverage was intense. Prepared to cover what many had forecast as "chaos," as the event rolled out TV crews and reporters scrambled instead to find anything at all to report. There were no crush loads on trains, only a few cancelled train runs (with no obvious relationship to the Penn Station work programs), and buttonholed commuters who had little to complain about other than somewhat longer travel times and unfamiliar surroundings. NJT's Morris & Essex riders, diverted to NJT's Hoboken terminal and generally unable to access New York Penn, were able to use their discounted tickets (photo) and transfer to various connecting carriers (story below) at no cost.

With the first morning commute out of the way, attention shifted to the evening ride home and the days to follow.  Some conjectured that the evening rush hour might be more intense, as many people leave their workplaces at about the same time. And perhaps many riders, wary of the predicted chaos, left home earlier than usual, or simply decided to work from home or take a day off. But as in the morning's commute, things went smoothly, although two M&E trains from Hoboken to Summit were cancelled, and passengers directed to following trains. Based on the first day's experience, NJT's plans seemed sound, although Mondays in the summer typically see a lighter-than-normal load as commuters extend their weekend.

Of course, the media was concentrated at the Manhattan and Hoboken terminals, and might not have been able to detect problems after riders passed through the terminals.  One rider on NJT #435, the 6:01 p.m. departure from  Hoboken to Gladstone, reported a last-minute track and platform change; a short, three-car train; no air conditioning in the first car; and delays enroute.  This may have been an isolated incident, or perhaps an indication that NJT still hasn't worked the bugs out of rerouting its fleet to Hoboken.

The discounted M&E tickets (photo) to Hoboken look just like a regular ticket, except for the price and the expiration date that appears -- September 1, 2017. The illustrated senior/disabled ticket costs $2.60; the regular price is $5.15.  (A full-fare ticket now sells for $6.00; the normal price is $11.75). The discount is only available on tickets between M&E points (Newark Broad St. through Hackettstown on the Morristown Line, and the Gladstone Branch) and Hoboken, and may be used to transfer to connecting services on bus and ferry lines and on PATH.

NJT's Hoboken Terminal

Amtrak's work program at New York's Penn Station began July 10 and will run through September 1;  all carriers using the crowded stations have announced service reductions and alternative travel options. The burden of service changes will fall on riders onNJT's Morris & Essex lines -- the Morristown and Gladstone branches, where almost all weekday trains running to and from New York will be diverted to Hoboken. North Jersey Coast Line trains normally serving Hoboken will terminate at Newark Penn Station instead.  Amtrak required NJT to cut 6 from its maximum of 21 trains in or out of Penn Station each hour; NJT said this would disrupt the trips of 7400 passengers each day. Information regarding the temporary schedules are available on NJT's website; for the most-affected Morris & Essex Lines, printed timetables for the new services are available at stations and were distributed on many trains on June 29. To download the latest schedules for the work period, visit www.njtransit.com, click on "Schedules and Fares," select "Train" from the dropdown box, then scroll down to the section "Upcoming PDF Schedules." (The M&E schedule, for example, is here.)  NJT announced a number of alternatives for affected riders to reach their destinations, and private carriers have also begun to offer alternatives. And some commuters vowed to drive in to Manhattan, or just work from home. 

Handy Guide

NJT has published an online handy guide for M&E riders during the work program; it's available in PDF format here.

NJT Rail Schedules

New weekday schedules have been released for all lines affected. This mostly involves schedules for the Morris & Essex and Montclair-Boonton lines. Weekend and holiday schedules are not affected. On the M&E, all trains to and from New York Penn Station (the "Midtown Direct" service) are rerouted to Hoboken, except for four inbound trains arriving before 7:00 a.m. On the Montclair-Boonton, trains will continue to run to and from New York, but in peak hours these trains will skip Newark Broad Street, which will make it impossible for M&E riders to transfer in peak hours -- which might have led to dangerous overcrowding. For both the M&E and M-B, significant schedule changes are in effect, so it's important for riders to consult the new timetables before traveling starting July 10. On other lines, the changes are minor; some connections have changed for travelers transferring at Secaucus Junction, and North Jersey Coast Line trains to and from Hoboken will terminate at Newark Penn Station, to make room for the additional M&E trains routed to Hoboken. Outside of peak hours, it will be possible for M&E riders to reach New York Penn via the remaining Montclair-Boonton trains that still stop at Newark Broad St.; these are listed in the revised M&E timetable. Riders are cautioned that late-night PATH service can be very inconvenient to Hoboken; M&E riders should consider the Montclair-Boonton line trains from New York to Montclair State University, and connect at Newark Broad St.; however those holding the reduced-fare Hoboken tickets may be required to buy a ticket reading from New York, or to pay surcharges on board. Off-peak Raritan Valley Line trains operating to and from New York will continue, with minor schedule changes.

"Plan B" Alternatives Appear

While NJT has planned extensive options for riders affected by its reroutings, competing options were reported by Larry Higgs for NJ Advance Media. One option is offered by Boxcar Bus, inbound in the morning from Madison, Chatham, Short Hills, Summit, and Millburn; tickets cost $13.99 and must be purchased via Boxcar Bus's smartphone app. According to the Higgs article, Our Bus is planning service from West Orange and Livingston, and is using crowdsourcing to determine pickup points; as of July 6, however, the new service didn't seem obvious on their website. From Morristown, Skedaddle will offer nonstop service between Morristown and 370 7th Avenue in Manhattan in both directions, three buses each way daily; tickets cost $17 and can be reserved on their website. Morristown officials are promoting the Skedaddle service, but not subsidizing it.

Reduced Fares

To compensate M&E riders for the loss of service, reduced fares will be available to Morris & Essex Lines  (Morristown and Gladstone lines) riders during the work period. A fare table is included in the M&E temporary schedule; all fares to Hoboken have been reduced by approximately 50%. This includes weekly, monthly, and single trip (adult and reduced senior/disabled) fares. Fares to New York and Newark Broad St. are unchanged, but riders to Newark should be able to purchase a cheaper Hoboken ticket and use it to Newark.  These reduced-fare Hoboken tickets will be valid only during the work period and cannot be used on other NJT lines. Monthly ticket users on the M&E should buy a Hoboken pass instead of a New York ticket for July; for the period July 1-9 these tickets will be valid to New York. Weekly and monthly tickets should be available through agents, ticket machines, and online apps; the one-way tickets will be available starting July 9.  The reduced-fare Hoboken tickets will not be honored to or from New York, except on the four early-morning (before 7 a.m.) inbound M&E trains.  The reduced-fare Hoboken tickets will not be honored weekdays to or from New York, except on the four inbound weekday trains arriving before 7:00 a.m. On weekends, weekly and monthly tickets will be honored to or from New York, but single trip riders must buy tickets to New York to travel there. 

NJT-Announced Connecting and Alternative Services

NJT announced a number of connecting and alternative services, including ticket honoring arrangements.  Passengers traveling via Hoboken will have their tickets cross-honored via PATH, New York Waterway, and NJT's #126 bus line to and from New York.  On PATH, inbound riders can use their NJT tickets at Hoboken; returning riders must board PATH at 33 Street or World Trade Center only to use their NJT tickets. PATH said it would add extra trains, and would be capable of handling 9000 additional riders daily. New York Waterway will offer a special peak-hour (7-10 a.m., 4-8 p.m.) ferry service between Hoboken and West 39 Street in Manhattan, every 15 minutes. At Newark Broad Street, there are several options.  Newark Light Rail service between Newark Broad St and Newark Penn will run on a 10-minute headway in peak hours (6:30-9:30 a.m. and 3:30 to 8:00 p.m.);  Hoboken monthly and weekly passes will be valid, but not single Hoboken tickets on the Light Rail; however, riders wishing to continue to New York via NJT rail service from Newark Penn will have to buy a ticket reading to NYP. Contracted bus services from Newark Broad, South Orange, Maplewood, and Summit to New York in the morning peak only (7-9 a.m.) will also be available to Hoboken ticketholders. NJT rail tickets will also be cross-honored on NJT and private bus lines, including DeCamp, Lakeland, and Community Coach lines (Caution: one NJT site says this requires New York tickets). NJT announced that enhanced service will be available on three of its bus lines: #107 from South Orange, #108 from Newark Broad, and #126 from Hoboken, with extra buses on standby at South Orange should overcrowding develop.

Frequently Asked Questions

NJT has a list of FAQs on its website.  Most of the answers are covered in this article, but here's a few miscellaneous topics:  A Hoboken pass or ticket will be honored on most alternative travel options, including buses, PATH, ferries, and the early morning M&E trains into New York; but if you really need to travel on other NJT lines or use other trains into New  York, consider buying a ticket or pass valid to New York; however, note that weekly/monthly (only) reduced-fare Hoboken passes will be honored on weekend trains to and from New York.  When updates to the work program are required, NJT will disseminate the information on its website, on social media (Facebook, Twitter, MyTransit alerts, texts to customers' cell phones, radio, TV, and PA systems at stations.

Weekend Service Not Affected

Weekend trains will operate normally; on the Morris & Essex and Montclair-Boonton lines, the main service on weekends is to New York Penn, with Hoboken service operating only every two to three hours.  NJT announced that weekly and monthly tickets reading to Hoboken will be honored on M&E trains to New York; however, single-trip riders will apparently have to purchase tickets at the regular prices and won't be able to use the special half-price tickets.

Gladstone Weekday Busing

Coincidentally with the Amtrak work program, midday busing on the Gladstone Branch also began July 10 and extends to September 1. Buses will replace trains for six midday weekday trains in each direction between Summit and Gladstone, from approximately 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Information is included in the special summer timetables; note that in some cases bus stops are a few blocks from the rail station. Eastbound passengers should note that the bus departure times are 15-25 minutes earlier than the trains they replace. Weekend Gladstone busing (all weekend trains), in effect since March, continues until sometime in the fall.

Long Island Rail Road, Amtrak Also Plan Service Changes

Long Island Rail Road, the other commuter service using New York Penn Station, also announced reductions in service and rerouting of trains to the line's other western terminals. LIRR also announced alternative bus and ferry services. Notably, LIRR's service changes were spread across the LIRR's various lines, in contrast to NJT's approach which mostly focuses on rerouting trains on the Morris & Essex lines.  LIRR also announced that there would be 25% discounts for riders diverted from New York Penn to the line's alternate terminals, Atlantic Terminal in Brooklyn or Hunterspoint Avenue in Queens.  Amtrak, which owns Penn Station and will be conducting the repair program in July and August, announced a reduction in New York-Washington service, and cut back of some of its Harrisburg trains to Philadelphia or Newark, N.J.; and three round trips between Manhattan and upstate New York, Amtrak's Empire Service line, will switch to Grand Central Terminal in Manhattan instead of using Penn Station.

So we have prepared this guide with some tips to make your summer travel as painless as possible.

The service changes will occur only on weekdays. Weekend service will NOT be affected. If you have a monthly or weekly ticket to Hoboken, it will be honored to New York on weekend trains. If you are an occasional rider with a single-trip ticket, you must pay the regular New York fare. Seniors and persons with disabilities will be entitled to ride for reduced fares, as always. The rest of the information in this document applies to weekday service only.

Four trains that arrive before 7:00 in the morning will still go to Penn Station, but no trains on the Morris & Essex Line will leave New York directly. All inbound trains arriving after 7:00 will go to Hoboken, and all outbound trains will leave from Hoboken.

If you are not familiar with Hoboken Terminal, you should know where to find the various transit services offered there. The terminal itself is a historic structure, built by the Lackawanna Railroad in 1907. It is a stubend terminal, so when trains come to a stop, you will be facing the terminal building. To the right as you exit the train are the higher-numbered tracks and the light-rail line that goes to Jersey City, Bayonne and other places in Hudson County. To the left are the lower-numbered tracks. If you walk toward the left on the concourse between the building and the tracks, you will find a stairway down to the PATH trains. We expect that an attendant will be positioned at the bottom of the stairs to let you into the PATH system when you show your ticket. The terminal building itself (known in railroad parlance as the “head house”) contains the historic waiting room, where you can wait until your train is ready for boarding. There are rest rooms located off the waiting room. Beyond the waiting room are the ferry slips. Be prepared to show the attendant your ticket as you board the ferry. If you are taking the #126 bus to Port Authority Bus Terminal, walk to the left from the train and turn left at the end of the concourse. You will pass some food stands on your right and come to an exit to the outside. Go through that exit and turn left. The bus terminal will be ahead of you.

PATH trains may be extremely crowded, especially during the busiest part of the morning peak commuting time, between 7:30 and 8:30. If you can use a ferry or a bus to get to New York during that time, you may wish to consider those alternatives. There will be more PATH trains at peak commuting times than under normal operation, but we are not sure that the proposed service will have enough capacity to accommodate the regular riders and the additional riders, too.

Be sure to allow plenty of time for your trip. You may not get onto the first PATH train from Hoboken. The bus from Hoboken to the Port Authority Bus Terminal (the #126) takes longer than PATH, and the ferries may take even longer. PATH is scheduled to take 14 minutes from Hoboken to 33d Street, and the #126 bus is scheduled to take 26 minutes to get to the Port Authority Bus Terminal. If the Lincoln Tunnel is crowded with buses, it could take longer. There will be a special ferry route between Hoboken and West 39th Street during peak commuting times, but that trip also requires a shuttle bus from the dock. Ferries are scheduled to take eight minutes to cross the river, but you will need a shuttle bus to reach your destination. Your total time will depend on where you need to go in Manhattan, and whether you need to use a bus, ferry-bus connection, or subway to reach your goal. If you take PATH, you will probably enter the platform at the back of the train. We suggest that you walk as far forward as you can before you board the train. The south exit of the 33rd Street station is closed for long-term renovations, so you will have to walk to the front of the train to exit the station. The same advice holds when you get on at 33d Street. You will show your ticket to an attendant and enter the station at the back of the train. The closer you get to the front, the closer you will be to the station in Hoboken when you get off.

Be careful about fares. Some Montclair trains can take you between Broad Street Station in Newark and Penn Station New York, but not during commuting hours. You will also need to pay a New York fare. Single-trip riders to or from New York on weekends will, also.

Hoboken fares are discounted approximately 50% during the service change, which includes monthly passes for July. These tickets will be honored on the early-morning trains into Penn Station and, monthly tickets will be valid to Penn Station for the first week of July. If you have a Hoboken ticket, you can ride into New York on the #126 bus from Hoboken, PATH or the ferries going to 39th Street or the World Financial Center. Returning to Hoboken, PATH will only honor Hoboken tickets for riders who board at 33d Street or the World Trade Center stations; not Newark Penn Station or intermediate stops on the “uptown” PATH line to 33d Street.

There will be extra buses during morning peak travel hours from Newark Penn Station, South Orange, Maplewood and Summit into New York. The #107 from South Orange and #108 from Newark Penn Station are operated by NJ Transit. Buses from Maplewood, Summit and Broad Street Station in Newark are contracted commercial buses that will run into New York between 7:00 and 9:00 in the morning, but there will be no “return” service. NJ Transit tickets will also be honored on DeCamp buses in the Montclair area, Lakeland buses in Morris County, and Community Coach in Morristown. NJ Transit also says that Hoboken tickets will be honored. Some towns have discussed chartering buses for their residents, but those buses would require a separate fare. We suggest that you check with your town to find out if they have one.

If you are expecting your ticket to be honored on a bus, ferry or PATH train, you may choose to purchase a “paper” ticket, which can be easily displayed to the bus driver or fare-checker. Commuters normally keep their tickets with them. If you are a single-trip riders, make sure that the conductor gives it back to you. You will need it for PATH, the #126 bus, or the ferry. We suggest that you purchase a round-trip ticket in advance, so you will have it to for the Manhattan link to Hoboken, whichever mode you choose to take. If you use PATH, there will be an attendant at the turnstile near the back of the train to inspect your ticket and let you in. We have not been informed that any other entrances will be covered that way, so we suggest that you go down the stairs from the concourse.

If you are riding during midday or in the evening, be sure to check the PATH connecting times, which are shown on the other side of the paper schedule from the weekday trains, to the right of the fare chart. PATH does not run very frequently, especially in the late evening, so you may have to leave Manhattan earlier than usual to catch your train at Hoboken. The worst case is the last train on the M&E Line, which previously left Penn Station at 12:56. It will leave Hoboken at 12:59, but you must leave the PATH 33rd Street station no later than 12:10; 49 minutes earlier. You can also take the last Montclair train, leaving at 12:34 and have a 22-minute wait at Newark for the M&E train. That alternative is slated to require a New York fare, however.

For more information from NJ Transit, go to www.njtransit-theupdate.com/morris-essex-line-rider-guide to find links to the PATH and NY Waterway ferry websites, along with information about extra bus service during the period. Schedules and operations are always subject to change, though.

There is also a place to click on the front page of the NJT web site, www.njtransit.com, for this information.

If you can take some extra vacation time or work from home more often this summer, that might be a good idea. The Morris & Essex Line has many more riders today than when everybody rode to Hoboken, before June 1996.

We will do the best we can to keep you informed of any changes, and to advise you about how to make the summer as painless as possible. We also urge you to join the Lackawanna Coalition and help us advocate for better transit in our region. We meet on the fourth Monday of every month (unless a holiday forces us to change the meeting date) at 7:00 at Millburn Town Hall. To learn more, check our website, www.lackawannacoalition.org. You do not need to be an expert on rail operations or on transit. We can help you to learn what you need to know. We are civic-minded volunteers who are familiar with our railroad and New Jersey Transit, and we have advocated for better rail transit on our lines since 1979. We hope you will come to a meeting and meet us, and we hope you will join us.

Good luck this summer, from the Lackawanna Coalition!

Amtrak has selected Richard Anderson, 62, as its new permanent CEO; Anderson had retired as Delta Airlines' CEO in 2016.  The railroad has been headed since last year by veteran freight railroad executive Charles Moorman, 65, who took over the throttle as a transitional leader.  Anderson assumes his new post on July 12, just days after Amtrak begins its summer work program at New York Penn Station which will inconvenience thousands of Penn Station users; the work program was initiated by outgoing CEO Moorman. Moorman will continue as co-CEO through a transitional period, until December 12. Anderson had previously worked at Delta predecessor Northwest Airlines, and also served as an executive with United Healthcare. He is credited with leading Delta through a bankruptcy and to its current status as one of the most successful airlines. It is expected that a major task for Anderson will be to pursue new tunnels under the Hudson River and other components of what Amtrak calls its "Gateway" project to improve and expand services at New York Penn. Anderson will receive only a token salary; Moorman also declined to be compensated for his work at Amtrak. The Anderson story is widely reported, including by Larry Higgs and Jonathan D. Salant for NJ Advance Media, and Patrick McGeehan for the New York Times.

The 31 St/8 Av Entrance to Penn Station

Amtrak CEO Wick Moorman, interviewed June 16 on the Brian Lehrer show on the New York public radio station WNYC, explained and defended Amtrak's plans to fix the infrastructure at New York's Penn Station. Amtrak's planned intensive work program in July and August has caused service changes in July and August which will inconvenience thousands of local and long-distance riders; see story below.

History explained

Moorman's introductory statement noted that Penn Station today is at capacity; it was designed in 1910 mostly for long distance travelers, not commuters, with narrow platforms not well suited for high-capacity suburban trains; and the capacity has not increased since the original design. Moorman said the infrastruture is good, but needs "renewal," which is a difficult job: Moorman said that in his 40 years of experience on freight railroads, he had not encountered the difficult working conditions in the restricted areas at NY Penn.  Moorman said that while Amtrak had "taken the lead" in renewing the infrastructure, the traditional program of doing the work on weekends has been insufficient; "we need to move aggressively to get the work done."  Hence, Amtrak has scheduled the intensive work program which will cause service disruptions in July and August.  Moorman noted that there has been "a substantial period of underinvestment" in Penn Station, not only by Amtrak but also by the commuter railroads (NJ Transit and Long Island Rail Road) that use Penn Station.

Who should pay?

Host Brian Lehrer noted that New York Gov. Cuomo has said that taxpayers ought not to have to pay for the repairs, and while their use of the station is restricted during the work, should not have to pay the normal fees that Amtrak collects from the commuter railroads. Moorman reviewed how the users of Penn Station, and the Northeast Corridor tracks, contribute to the costs of running the system.  He said that historically, the fees paid to Amtrak were not sufficient; a 2008 law corrected this, and since 2015 the increased fees that Amtak is collecting have put the system on a better footing. Moorman noted that more than 40% of the traffic at New York Penn is from the Long Island Rail Road, with NJT's traffic almost as much, so Amtrak's usage is only a small portion of the total.  Nonetheless, Moorman said, Amtrak has funded about 70% of the capital improvements; in any case, he said, "the last thing to do is to take money out of Penn Station."

Will the work be finished on time?

Moorman said that the infrastructure work program will definitely be finished by the September completion date.

Should management of Penn Station change?

NY Gov. Cuomo has proposed that management of Penn Station should be taken out of Amtrak's hands, and entrusted to an independent organization, perhaps the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. Moorman did not agree, but repeated a plan he has previously proposed, in which the management of the passenger concourses could be taken over by an independent organization; he likened this to airports in which an authority runs facilities used in common by a number of airlines. In this case, Amtrak, NJT, and LIRR would be like the individual airlilnes.

Amtrak's Future and the White House Budget

WNYC's host Brian Lehrer noted that the proposed White House budget would slash Amtrak's long-distance funding and funding for the Gateway capital improvement program, which would expand Penn Station and build new tunnels under the Hudson.  Moorman said that the final decisions are up to Congress, and emphasized Amtrak's good relationship with both political parties; he said that while ideological differences exist, he doesn't see that as a problem.  As for Gateway, Moorman said it's essential to add capacity at New York Penn and to build the new tunnels, and expressed confidence that the funding for Gateway would be secured.

NJT Riders Await Their Trains at NY Penn

As NJT commuters brace for a summer of diverted trains and longer commutes (see story below), service continues to deteriorate in advance of Amtrak's plans to fix infrastructure problems at New York Penn Station.  Pending the repair work, Amtrak required trains using the west end of Penn Station -- including all NJT trains serving New York -- to observe a reduced speed limit of 10 mph, down from the usual 15 mph. This, NJT said, was one factor in delays at NY Penn; the railroad continued to warn riders of possible delays for all trains into and out of the busy station. In May, according to reporting by Larry Higgs for NJ Advance Media (and printed in the Star-Ledger, June 16), only 46% of NJT trains into Penn in the morning were on time, which, according to Higgs, may be the worst performance in NJT's history.  NJT Executive Director Steve Santoro blamed the Amtrak infrastructure problems, saying "I don't believe it's been that low for an extended time. The obvious reason is the performance is based on the Amtrak repairs that are ongoing at Penn Station."  The performance was better in the evening rush; Santoro said that's because the trains are more spaced out in the evening.  NJT has requested that Amtrak remove the speed reduction, but so far Amtrak has only done so for the eastern approaches to the station, which NJT only uses for some empty trains.

By now you know this summer will be difficult for you, our riders, as track work at Penn Station will send most of our weekday trains to Hoboken.  We know this will make your trip more difficult, especially if you currently commute to Penn Station, New York on Midtown Direct trains.

We will continue to do everything we can to make the summer as painless as possible for you.  We have been fighting for you concerning this summer's service changes since we first learned about them. 

John Bobsin has been working hard to keep you informed on this web site, and we commend him for this much-needed and very valuable effort.  We will be glad to share whatever information we have that will take some of the pain out of your summer trips and commuting.  We will do the best we can to keep you informed in a manner that will improve your transit experience.  Please continue to check with us here on this site, and read our newsletter, the Railgram.

We thank you for your interest, and we hope you will join the Lackawanna Coalition, so you can help us to advocate for better transit for YOU.

DAVID PETER ALAN, Chair

Existing entrance to the Penn "rabbit warren"

In three years or so, if schedules are to be believed, a sparkling addition will open to the crowded subterranean rabbit warren that is today's Penn Station in Manhattan. It's the Moynihan Station (or "Train Hall"), created from the underutilized post office across 8th Avenue from today's Penn Station, which is actually the basement of Madison Square Garden, the original station having been razed in the 1960s to make way for the Garden. The Moynihan addition will boast wide open spaces, sunlight from above, sparlking train announcement boards, and an array of shops and businesses.  Artists' renderings of the new space include train announcement boards showing departures for Washington, Boston, Ronkonkoma, Chicago, Port Washington . . .

What's missing? Any indication that NJ Transit has any connection to Penn Station at all, despite the fact that nearly half the trains using the station are operated by NJT. Most of the platforms used by NJT are directly accessible from the new Moynihan annex, which will be convenient to the housing being built and many new jobs in the Hudson Yards area between Moynihan and the Hudson River, so many NJT riders could be expected to take advantage of the new facility.

Why is NJT conspicuously absent in the design of Moynihan? It turns out that there are two platforms in Penn Station, used almost exclusively by NJT, which are not long enough to allow stairways to reach the Moynihan facility: these platforms serve tracks 1 through 4.  At one time there was a plan to extend these platforms, which would allow NJT to use the platform for 10-car trains, which now are restricted to longer platforms; but the plan has fallen by the wayside. It's impossible to connect the existing, shorter platforms to Moynihan, as the 8th Avenue subway tracks cross overhead at the end of the platorms, so no stairs or escalators can be built there. Extending the platforms might be expensive, as reconstruction of the access tracks would be necessary.

Why won't NJT be mentioned in the Moynihan "train hall?" A facile explanation might be that Moynihan is a project of Amtrak and New York State, neither of which can be expected to protect the interest of New Jersey train riders. There is a technical explanation, too: if riders come to Moynihan expecting to depart on NJT trains, and if their trains are announced for tracks 1 through 4, they will have no easy way to get to those tracks. They would be faced with a long underground detour, eventually  through the Long Island Rail Road and Amtrak portions of Penn Station, possibly as much as 1000 feet of hoofing before reaching their train, if they can make the journey at all in time to catch it.  The bulk of NJT trains could be easily reached from Moynihan, but the inaccessibility of these two platforms give Moynihan designers an excuse to exclude NJT completely.

The Lackawanna Coalition believe that this situation is inexcusable, and resolved at its May 22, 2017 meeting to call on NJT and NJ state legislators to include the extension of the two platforms in the Fiscal Year 2018 capital budget; to complete the project by 2020; and to work with the developers of Moynihan to "make certain that all the  needs of NJ Transit customers are included in the Moynihan Train Hall."