Hell Gate Line Project Gets A Green Light From Feds

NEW YORK — The Penn Station Access Project to bring Metro-North Railroad service from New Rochelle through the eastern Bronx into Manhattan moved a step closer to reality as the Federal Transit Administration declared the work would have no adverse environmental impact.

The Metropolitan Transit Authority's plan is to introduce New Haven Line passenger service into and out of Penn Station and connect it to Amtrak in Westchester County.

In fact, the feds said the project would improve socioeconomic conditions in the Bronx, which is a transit desert, The Journal News reported. TJN also reported that the MTA and Amtrak have resolved their fight over access fees for use of the Hell Gate and replacement costs for the Pelham Bay Bridge.

The plan is to rehabilitate Amtrak's neglected Hell's Gate track from New Rochelle to Penn Station. Four new ADA-accessible Metro-North stations will be constructed in the eastern Bronx at Hunts Point, Parkchester/Van Nest, Morris Park, and Co-op City.

The $1.583 billion project represents the largest expansion of Metro-North Railroad since it was created 37 years ago. Founded in 1983 when the MTA assumed control of Conrail commuter operations in New York and Connecticut, Metro-North has 384 route miles and 775 miles of track going to 124 stations in seven counties in New York State — Dutchess, Putnam, Westchester, Bronx, New York, Rockland, and Orange — and Fairfield and New Haven counties in Connecticut.

About 30,000 passengers per day are expected to use the new service. Daily, 13,000 riders will get on or off at the four new stations in the East Bronx. Metro-North expects to operate 102 trains on the Hell Gate Line, while 60 Amtrak trains are expected to use it.

Officials expect the new rail line to spur the local economy and attract regional talent; they point to increasing accessibility to underserved areas and improving reliability and on-time performance for intercity passengers.

The MTA has yet to choose a winning bidder to design and build the project, but it can't start right away anyway — not until the East Side Access Project gets the Long Island Rail Road into Grand Central. SEE: 3 Firms May Bid On New Hell Gate Commuter Line