Trump Administration Takes Control of Penn Station Overhaul

by Sean Jeans-Gail | V.P. of Government Affairs + Policy

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The U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) announced this week it will be asserting federal control over the Penn Station Reconstruction project in New York City, replacing the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) as project lead. Amtrak, backed by the USDOT, will take over management of the project that the USDOT deemed "critical".

USDOT also announced that, as part of its new approach to the Penn Station project, the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) is rescoping and reducing the federal grant for project development. They argue this approach will "save taxpayers approximately $120 million while still ensuring a safe, modern, and efficient transit hub for the nation’s financial capital.”

“Under President Trump’s vision, we’re restoring accountability to infrastructure projects,” said FRA Chief Counsel Kyle Fields. “By empowering Amtrak and leveraging private investment, we’re guaranteeing a Penn Station that’s safer, more reliable, and built to serve the American people for generations.”

The USDOT announcement refers to a $72.5 million Federal-State Partnership-NEC Grant Program award to MTA for “New York Penn Station Reconstruction". The grant, awarded in Nov. 2024, was intended to fund environmental review and other project development activities, including “increasing concourse capacity and access both within and outside the station, improving ventilation and fire safety, and installing user-friendly wayfinding.”

USDOT states that with “the reduced allocation in its separate FSP Program grant, Amtrak can pursue a master developer to examine both reconstruction and potential expansion of the station.” However, the accompanying letter to Amtrak doesn’t clarify what elements will be cut or how precisely these efficiencies will be achieved.

New York Leadership Responds

In her response to the announcement, New York Governor Kathy Hochul (D) seemed delighted to let the project be someone else’s problem.

“In multiple meetings with President Trump, I requested that the federal government fund the long-overdue overhaul of Penn Station," Gov. Hochul wrote in a statement. "Clearly that effort has been successful, and I want to thank the president and Secretary Duffy for taking on the sole responsibility to deliver the beautiful new $7 billion station that New Yorkers deserve. This is a major victory for New Yorkers, and the use of federal funds will save New York taxpayers $1.3 billion that would have otherwise been necessary for this project.”

MTA, for its part, tried to strike a balance, saying it welcomed federal leadership while reasserting its central role in shaping the future of the busiest rail station in the Western Hemisphere.

“As the major leaseholder in the station, we expect to participate in the Administration’s and Amtrak’s efforts to ensure future plans meet the needs of everyone who uses it,” MTA Chair and CEO Janno Lieber.

What Comes Next?

The disastrous decision to demolish the original Penn Station in the 1960s has had a long tail. After the construction of the new Penn Station, historian Vincent Scully wrote: “One entered the city like a god; one scuttles in now like a rat.”

Undoing this disaster has been a long and tortured process. Now that the Trump Administration has placed itself at the center of the project, it’s tempting for people to use this as an opportunity to brush off their preferred alternatives that have fallen by the wayside.

As just one instance: the National Civic Art Society applauded the federal takeover of the project, saying they hope it will advance their plan to relocate Madison Square Garden just east of 7th Avenue, freeing up space for a grand train hall modeled after the original Penn Station.

“We are delighted that the administration is taking charge,” NCAS President Justin Shubow told Gothamist. “Only President Trump can get a new Penn Station built after generations of politicians have failed. It is also heartening news since as President Trump has proven he understands the beauty and popularity of classical civic buildings. We hope he will make Penn Station classical again.”

Even I'm not immune! If I'm being honest, part of me hopes that this focus on efficiency will lead the USDOT to reevaluate through-running at Penn Station, which has been previously rejected by Amtrak and the commuter railroads that serve the station (New Jersey Transit and Long Island Railroad). Through-running would not only provide a cost-effective means to expand capacity, it would also enable through-running regional rail service on the NJT and LIRR networks (and Metro North, once Penn Station Access advances far enough to allow New Haven Line trains to serve Penn Station).

However, regional rail service would require a regional approach to network planning, and New York, Connecticut and New Jersey have expressed no interest in doing that. The Trump Administration, for its part, seems more interested in feuding with New York Democrats than bridging state divides.

And so it’s important to acknowledge that a likely outcome of this week's announcement is the projects that are already approved move forward with a reduced scope, nothing significant happens with Penn Station Reconstruction for the remainder of the Trump Administration, and the various parties start the project design process from scratch in 2028.

I hope that's an overly cynical take. We won't know until USDOT and Amtrak outline their next steps.

One thing is clear: the Trump Administration owns this project now, and everyone else is watching from the sidelines.