All images courtesy of PAU
After being removed from the Penn Station reconstruction project by the federal government, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority has rejected an offer from Amtrak to rejoin the effort. Andy Byford, senior adviser at Amtrak, sent a letter to MTA Chair and CEO Janno Lieber on Monday formally inviting the MTA to return as a “fully involved” partner after the agency was taken off the project last year and its original reconstruction plan was scrapped. Lieber declined to sign an agreement to join, questioning whether President Donald Trump and Amtrak would follow through on the development.
The MTA’s rejection marks another chapter in the tumultuous process surrounding the Penn Station reconstruction. Released in 2023, the MTA plan called for replacing Penn Station with a 250,000-square-foot, single-level facility centered around a spacious, light-filled train hall.
However, in April 2025, the Trump administration said it was taking over the project, with Amtrak spearheading the overhaul instead. Department of Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said the move would save taxpayers $120 million and echoed Trump’s statements that “the days of reckless spending” were over.
Last month, the administration selected a master developer for the project, a joint venture of Halmar International and Skanska. Lieber said the renovation plan had the “appearance of impropriety” because the selection process was “opaque,” according to the New York Times.
The announcement came a day after Duffy said the federal government would spend $8 billion to rebuild the station, as 6sqft previously reported.
Earlier this month, Amtrak released the first renderings of the project. Designed by Practice for Architecture and Urbanism (PAU), the plan references the architectural legacy of the original Penn Station, designed by McKim, Mead & White and demolished in the 1960s, as well as the Farley Building across Eighth Avenue.
Rather than demolishing blocks to relocate Madison Square Garden and build a new station, the design preserves much of the existing structure through “surgical reconstruction paired with radical thinking,” according to PAU.
Inside, the station is centered around a 50-foot train hall with public spaces, including shops, restaurants, bars, and waiting areas. A sculptural stair connects the street to the single-level concourse, which will feature widened corridors, ceiling heights of at least 20 feet, and upgraded public amenities.
Byford said that Amtrak plans to move forward with the project whether or not the MTA agrees to cooperate. Lieber noted that the MTA’s lease agreement with Amtrak gives the agency approval rights for any construction affecting the northern part of the station.
In October, Amtrak sent the MTA a “collaboration agreement” that would have granted the federal government more say over renovation decisions. However, the MTA has not signed on, saying it would compromise the existing lease agreement that gives it significant control over the project, according to the Times.
“The MTA’s Long Island Rail Road and the MTA’s subways carry two-thirds of the daily users of Penn Station,” Lieber wrote, according to Gothamist. “Even more important, the Long Island Rail Road has a prepaid lease running for another 160 years that gives us approval rights for any construction within or affecting the northern half of the station.”
Lieber has also said Amtrak’s plan could lead to higher costs for riders, a contention Byford denied in an interview this week, as reported by the Times. Byford also said Amtrak’s plan would not affect the station’s new Seventh Avenue entrance and 33rd Street concourse, built under Lieber’s leadership and opened in November 2023.
Looking ahead, Lieber said the agency is “ready to collaborate,” but rejected the creation of a new agreement that would eliminate the rights it holds under the lease. “In order to do it, just send us the plans, brief us, and we will give you feedback,” he said, according to Gothamist.
Amtrak says construction on the project will begin by the end of 2027. For now, the agency still needs to secure funding and reach an agreement with all involved parties.
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