NEW YORK — Amtrak service will be disrupted on its New York-Albany route on Tuesday for a third straight day, according to an updated service advisory on Amtrak’s website, although the service suspension is now officially between Penn Station and Croton-Harmon.
According to the advisory posted at 5 p.m. EST, service will be much as it was today (Monday, Nov. 13). Empire Service trains 233, 235, 237, 240, 241, 244, and 280 are canceled, although No. 280 will operate between Niagara Falls and Albany. Trains 49 (the Lake Shore Limited) and 69 (the Adirondack) will orginate at Albany. Empire Service trains 232, 236, 238, 284, and 294 will originate or end at Croton-Harmon, as will trains 63 and 64, the Maple Leaf. Metro-North is honoring tickets between Croton-Harmon and Grand Central Terminal.
Amtrak service on the New York-Albany route has been blocked since Sunday because of structural issues with a parking garage above Amtrak’s route out of Penn Station [see “Suspension of Amtrak service …,” Trains News Wire, Nov. 12, 2023]. WABC-TV reports the issues with the Hudson View Garage is also a concern for residents of a 30-story apartment building that sits on top of the parking structure, and owners of the 104 vehicles parked in the garage may not be able to remove their cars before Saturday at the earliest. New York’s Department of Buildings has found defects including cracked and deteriorated beams, after first discovering small holes in two ramps of the parking garage.
There is no estimate when rail service might resume.
— Updated at 2 p.m. CST to correct reference to “30-story apartment building.”
Lack of credible and responible reporting by Tv reporters and anchors. It seems like the media today goes for hype and hysteria to generate viewers and ratings. Of there is no such thing as a 30 story parking garage, Reporters and news anchors get your stories and facts straight and stop flooding the airwaves and viewers with this irresponible and so called fake news. Alos it wouldn’t hurt for the new media to bone up on how railroads and trains operate and the various types of equipment and operations. So many reporters and anchors are really ignorant and lack the basic knowledge of how a train and railroad works. Years ago I worked for a weekly city magazine and our rules and policy was that no story or article could be released or published witout the work and dedication of the fact checkers that our magazine had. Perhaps it is time for the news anchors and repoeters to do the same Please get your information and facts straight and correct before you report any story or event on the air. You owe it to your listeners and watchers to give them truthful and accurate information and not hype to generate ratings and new viewers. We know that we live in a society today where people just love to hear sensation and gore and hype but let’s be real and present the facts as they come in and are investigated and verified.
Joseph C. Markfelder
“30 story parking garage”? Even for Manhattan, that would be excessive. It’s actually an apartment/condo building.
BTW, the TV station referenced in the article (WABC) has had frequent coverage of this story without once mentioning the transfer at Croton_Harmon. All they say is “no Amtrak service north out of Penn Station”.
They could get the Lake Shore into and out of Sunnyside, but they would have to run it down to the connection that was built next to the Harlem River to get to Oak Point yard, then back up over Hell Gate bridge to Sunnyside where they could service the train. There should be plenty of time to accomplish this. The only issue would be qualified traon crews.
Amtrak operated 6 daily trains into GCT in the summers of 2017 and 2018, IIRC, due to extensive track rehab and general repairs at Penn Station.
However, many travelers on Monday found those Metro-North trains were sold out.
Dr. Güntürk Üstün
MNR trains are commuter trains. They are unreserved and do not sell out unless the actual train is so full no one can get on.
The Amtrak trains can be sold out, especially with the reduced service Amtrak is operating.
And there is little spare equipment on the Empire Line since the trains run from Sunnyside Yard and the equipment is on the other side of the blockade. An equipment train could be run to Boston, then to A-R on 449.
Philip Mulligan an equipment train could run to New Rochelle, Back down to 125th Street and then up tp Croton-Harmon. No need to go to Boston.
Why do any trains have to be canceled? Why can’t they all run to and from Croton-Harmon? Is there no spare equipment on the rest of the Empire Service line?
You’ve missed the point James. It is not lack of equipment problem. The Empire Service line is closed just north of Penn Station due to structural issues with a parking garage .
As explained in the comment section on an earlier article Amtrak power can’t operate on Metro North due to power shoe differences
Tere’s no facilities to stock long distance trains at Croton-Harmon. Albany or Penn Station (Sunnyside). Conceivably it could be done at Grand Central but it hasn’t been done there for years.