The $ 1.6 billion project that replaces Manhattan’s cramped, dark Penn Station with a light-filled train corridor is scheduled to be completed this week, with the first trains leaving on New Year’s Day.
The new 255,000 square foot station is named after US Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan, a Democrat who defended the project and died in 2003. Governor Andrew Cuomo, also a Democrat, announced on Sunday that the Moynihan Train Hall will be completed on time and within of the budget Thursday, despite the challenges posed by the coronavirus pandemic.
Work began in 2017 to transform the famous Farley Post Office into a new station across the street from former Penn Station. It will be used by passengers on Long Island Rail Road and Amtrak.
“This monumental achievement is a shot of hope when we leave one of the darkest periods in our history and sends a clear message to the world that although we have suffered a lot as a result of this health crisis that occurs once in a century, the pandemic has not prevented from dreaming big and building for the future, “Cuomo said in a statement.