by MNCRR9000
Governor Andrew M. Cuomo on September 6, 2018, announced Penn Station will now feature a new entrance at 33rd Street and 7th Avenue providing direct access to the Long Island Rail Road Main Concourse and the New York City Subway. The announcement also included the expansion of the Long Island Rail Road corridor at Penn Station to improve safety, security and passenger flow, as well as significant milestones in the on-time, on-budget construction of the Moynihan Train Hall. In addition, the Long Island Rail Road Main Concourse between 7th and 8th Avenues will be roughly doubled in size and the ceiling will be raised by up to 11 feet. The improvements are part of the Governor's overarching vision to completely remake this transportation hub located at the heart of the New York's regional rail network.
"For years there has been talk about transforming Penn Station, but no action, forcing New York's commuters and visitors to endure congested and potentially unsafe conditions for far too long," Governor Cuomo said. "The projects currently underway, including a new, state-of-the-art entrance, will not only turn Penn Station into a world-class transit hub, but they will ease the flow for riders and improve the overall passenger experience for all who pass through."
At the centerpiece of this transformation - Moynihan Train Hall - the structure for the midblock skylight is now complete. The Train Hall is slated for substantial completion by the end of 2020, and the Long Island Rail Road improvements will open in 2022 - when East Side Access and the Penn Station Metro-North Access projects are expected to come online.
LIRR Penn Station Concourse Improvements
The new entrance at 7th Avenue and 33rd Street will accommodate tens of thousands of LIRR passengers a day. The entrance is ideally located to improve visibility, safety, and circulation, and will allow thousands of subway riders easier access to the subway system. Brand new stairwells and a trio of new escalators will be constructed to improve the movement of passengers.
In addition, the LIRR Main Concourse will be widened from its current 30 feet to 57 feet to allow easier access to trains and reduce potentially dangerous crowding. The design has been further developed so that the Concourse will be 18 feet high all the way across the new 57-foot width, eliminating the 7 and 8-foot high areas that have made the station experience feel less spacious. Lighting will be improved, with ceilings raised and more intuitive wayfinding. LIRR customers will have new direct sight lines to track level and there will be additional retail and dining options in the revitalized Concourse as well.
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