The head of the US Department of Transportation (DOT) has announced that the Trump administration would be taking over the reconstruction of Penn Station in New York, removing it from the care of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA).
Alongside the transportation department, Amtrak – which is federally funded – will now helm the project.
Penn Station sees more than 600,000 commuters every day and is the busiest transit hub in the western hemisphere. The MTA has for years attempted to execute its plan to renovate the station in an effort to increase train service in and out of New York and instead found itself mired in controversy owing in part to competing priorities of its various stakeholders. Some of those include the MTA, Amtrak, NJ Transit and Madison Square Garden (the venue which sits atop Penn Station).
The DOT claimed in a statement that this move “will save taxpayers approximately $120m” and that Trump is “also championing a public-private partnership model for Penn Station, harnessing private sector innovation and capital to minimize financial risk to taxpayers”.
The statement did not clarify how, exactly, this will save taxpayers money or what the administration’s plans for the renovations include.
Amtrak officials did not immediately respond to the Guardian’s request for comment.
The transportation secretary, Sean Duffy, said in a statement: “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. By putting taxpayers first, we’re ensuring every dollar is spent wisely to create a transit hub all Americans can take pride in.”
Amtrak’s takeover of the project comes barely a month after its CEO Stephen Gardner stepped down from his position “to ensure that Amtrak continues to enjoy the full faith and confidence of this administration”, according to ABC7.
Gardner’s resignation took place in the immediate aftermath of remarks from Trump’s billionaire ally Elon Musk, who said at the Morgan Stanley Technology Media & Telecom conference in March that it was “kind of embarrassing” how other countries have “way better passenger rail than we do” and that “Amtrak is a sad situation”. Musk added that he thought Amtrak should be privatized.
