Transportation Secretary Takes Control of Penn Station Overhaul From New York

Moving forward, Amtrak, backed by the Transportation Department, will lead the reconstruction project.

Entrance to Pennsylvania Station at Seventh Avenue in New York, on Feb. 6, 2017. Samira Bouaou/Epoch Times

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced on April 17 that he would assume authority over the Pennsylvania “Penn” Station reconstruction project in New York City.

In Thursday’s news release, Duffy said that through the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), he would withdraw New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) from leading the project in the city.

Moving forward, Amtrak, backed by the Transportation Department, will helm the reconstruction project.

Amtrak, also known as the National Railroad Passenger Corporation, owns Penn Station, New York’s main intercity railroad hub and the busiest transportation facility in the Western Hemisphere.

The station serves more than 10 million Amtrak riders every year, the Transportation Department noted.

Duffy’s move will involve “rescoping and slashing” Amtrak’s federal grant from the FRA by roughly $120 million. He said the smaller contract is an effort to save taxpayer dollars.

“New York City deserves a Penn Station that reflects America’s greatness and is safe and clean. The MTA’s history of inefficiency, waste, and mismanagement also meant that a new approach is needed,” Duffy wrote in a statement. “By putting taxpayers first, we’re ensuring every dollar is spent wisely to create a transit hub all Americans can take pride in.”

The Trump administration will advance a “public-private partnership model” for Penn Station in an effort to reduce costs.

FRA Chief Counsel Kyle Fields said Duffy’s move amounts to “restoring accountability to infrastructure projects.”

“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,” he wrote in a statement.

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, a Democrat, said she had multiple meetings with President Donald Trump to request that the federal government fund the “long-overdue overhaul of Penn Station.”

“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,” she wrote in a statement.

“This is a major victory for New Yorkers, and the use of federal funds will save New York taxpayers $1.3 billion dollars that would have otherwise been necessary for this project.”

Fields sent a letter on Thursday to the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, informing it that the FRA had withdrawn its $72 million Federal-State Partnership Program grant awarded in November 2024.

“FRA’s mission to enable the safe, reliable, and efficient movement of people and goods for a strong America, now and in the future, includes modernization and expansion of the Nation’s rail system,” Fields wrote.

“In implementing that mission, FRA is committed to ensuring that rail development projects, including those proposed for Penn Station New York, further the goal of achieving modern, efficient passenger rail service for the communities it serves.”