Trump Administration pledges billions for new Penn Station

MIDTOWN (WABC) -- The Trump Administration and Amtrak have come up with an $8 billion plan to overhaul Penn Station.

While Madison Square Garden will stay, a lot of other things will not.

There will be a new grand entrance, new concourses and shops, plus more rail capacity.

To the thousands of commuters flooding through Penn Station, seeing a laser Thursday to make 3D images must have looked like a search for the paranormal. It was to scoping out the tracks, peering around corners and creeping slowly down the central corridor and slipping quietly into storefronts.

The 3D images will be used as part of a multi-billion-dollar project to rebuild Penn Station.

"If they're willing to make that investment, as they say, and they're not going to mess with the Long Island Railroad areas, we're very excited," MTA Chairman Janno Lieber said.

The original renderings depicted soaring ceilings, vast open corridors and a majestic new entrance on 8th Avenue.

The Trump Administration took over the project last year, led by former transit president Andy Byford.

"The project is one step closer to having shovels in the ground next year," Byford said Thursday. "It demonstrates that Amtrak and USDOT are uniquely capable of making this vision a reality."

In testimony before Congress on Wednesday, transportation secretary Sean Duffy said the administration was committing $8 billion for the project.

Penn Station was built in 1910 but fell into disrepair and was demolished in the 1960s. Previous concepts never got off the drawing board. Ron Siegel owns restaurants in Penn Station.

"I think it's a great idea because it'll help clean up the station. It'll give the station a much better image. And it is-it is America's transportation hub," Siegel said.

Some riders are skeptical.

"There will obviously be strings attached. It's going to be learned that it's going to be 'Trump Station.' And, you know, it's just another grift after another grift after another grift," one commuter said.

"The federal government's commitment to this, and the fact that this is the best proposal I've seen in 25 years for actually fixing Penn Station, those coming together give me a real sense of optimism," Tom Wright with the Regional Plan Association said.

Two generations of riders have heard a lot of promises. But if this happens, and it happens on time, Penn Station could be rebuilt within six years.

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