Amtrak is transferring full velocity forward with tunnel closures within the metropolis on Friday — regardless of pleas from Gov. Kathy Hochul and Mayor Eric Adams who concern the three-year mission may trigger transit chaos.
Amtrak management had a “productive” assembly with Hochul and leaders of the Metropolitan Transit Company Thursday, however Amtrak will nonetheless shut considered one of two westbound practice tracks within the East River Tunnel, in response to Amtrak spokesperson Jason Abrams.
“Amtrak reassured the Governor and MTA of our commitment to minimizing impacts to passengers throughout the project,” Abrams mentioned.
The transit big’s much-maligned plan earned the ire of Lengthy Islanders and high metropolis and state officers over worries the closure may have an effect on MTA trains from Queens into Penn Station. Any unexpected development issues might imply all entry within the tunnel must be closed off, probably disrupting practice site visitors on a significant regional scale, critics have argued.
However Amtrak mentioned to attempt to keep away from delays it should present around-the-clock engineering protection through the outage, conduct extra frequent inspections of the remaining westbound monitor — and strategically place rescue gear so delays could be swiftly resolved.
Hochul mentioned Amtrak additionally agreed to permit third-party consultants to look at the mission to find out if the second tunnel must be absolutely closed when that development begins within the fall of 2026 and runs for 13 months. The development on the primary tunnel beginning Friday may also take about 13 months, Amtrak engineers mentioned.
Hochul requested Amtrak to droop dynamic pricing on affected practice journeys through the shutdown. Abrams mentioned Amtrak is assessing the feasibility with the New York State Division of Transportation.
Mayor Eric Adams jumped into the tunnel tug-of-war Could 6, sending a fiery letter to US Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy — blasting Amtrak’s East River shutdown plan and demanding feds step in earlier than commuters are left stranded and steaming.
Metropolis Corridor sources mentioned Adams has been going forwards and backwards with the White Home on the shutdown, even having Randy Maestro, the primary deputy mayor, make the admin’s case. However finally, the mayor’s workplace is letting Hochul lead the dialogue.
“Top administration officials have had numerous conversations with Amtrak and the White House on this issue, and negotiations are still ongoing with the White House,” a Metropolis Corridor rep mentioned in an announcement.
The MTA’s Lengthy Island Railroad service makes use of the East River Tunnel for tons of of trains every day. LIRR President Rob Free has tried to distance the MTA from the closure plan, calling it “Amtrak’s operation” final week — regardless that the MTA green-lit Amtrak’s plan to shut the tunnels again in October 2023.
Amtrak has maintained that the total closure of the tunnels is important due to the extent of damages because it was walloped by Hurricane Sandy in 2012.
“Amtrak is committed to delivering for today’s riders while making the long-overdue investments needed to protect service for future generations,” Abrams mentioned.
