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Amtrak Works to Keep the NYC Rail Tunnel Open Until Its Gateway Project Is Done

Amtrak Works to Keep the NYC Rail Tunnel Open Until Its Gateway Project Is Done

Amtrak’s $12.3 billion plan for a new commuter-train path under the Hudson River between New Jersey and Manhattan will take more than a decade to complete. In the meantime, it’s working to keep open the current tunnel.

The railroad operator, which owns the existing North River Tunnel, will outline a series of interim projects in a report released this week, according to documents reviewed by Bloomberg. The work, which is ongoing and will take more than two years, involves eliminating water in the tunnel that causes signal failures and corrosion and improving the tunnel’s drainage system.

“Leak mitigation will enhance overall safety within the tunnels,” according to the report. “Track workers and the traveling public will be less exposed to safety hazards caused by falling concrete, formation of icicles, and slippery walkway surfaces.”

Amtrak has budgeted around $150 million for those repairs, spokesman Craig Schulz said this week during a tour of the tunnel. The work, taking place on weeknights and weekends to minimize impact on riders, is “intended to address the most problematic areas of train delays,” he said. 

The North River Tunnel, built in 1910, is critical for commuters on New Jersey Transit and Amtrak’s busy Northeast Corridor line. When Hurricane Sandy hit in 2012, the tunnel flooded with seawater, causing severe damage to its infrastructure. The original tunnel tracks consist of rock ballast and timber ties that have become coated with corrosive elements.

Amtrak Works to Keep the NYC Rail Tunnel Open Until Its Gateway Project Is Done

Amtrak says the tunnel is safe for use, but is in poor condition. Other work includes replacing cables that are more than 80 years old and have corroded.

“Track system-related failures, especially in the North Tube, typically are a result of constant infiltration and ineffective track drainage,” the study said.

Amtrak Works to Keep the NYC Rail Tunnel Open Until Its Gateway Project Is Done

Construction permits for the much larger Gateway tunnel project are in place, but the project still needs $5.6 billion of federal money. Amtrak will pay $1.4 billion while New York, New Jersey and the bistate Port Authority pay a combined $6.1 billion.  

Once Gateway is built, each of the North River tunnel’s tubes will need to be closed for more than a year for reconstruction. Without a new rail crossing, closing one tube of the existing tunnel would reduce the number of trains that could serve Penn Station to a fraction of current service.

“If you ever lose one of the other tunnels to the next big storm it’s going to cut back the number of trains,” Howard Cure, director of Municipal Bond Research for Evercore Wealth Management said in an interview.  “It will be a real financial burden for the region.”

©2021 Bloomberg L.P.