MTA completes review of 4 new east Bronx stations
The Metropolitan Transportation
Authority (MTA) announced
on Sept. 27 that the
environmental review process
for the Metro-North Penn Station
Access Project is complete.
The milestone makes four new
stations in the Bronx as well as
direct Metro-North service to
Penn Station from the Bronx,
Westchester and Connecticut a
step closer to reality.
“This is an important milestone
for a project that will
give people in several transit
deprived areas of the East
Bronx with access to jobs, education,
health care and everything
New York and Connecticut
have to offer,” said Acting
MTA Chair and CEO Janno
Lieber. “By making use of existing
infrastructure, we are
connecting people to these opportunities
at a fraction of the
cost it would take to build a
new rail line. The next step is
to award a contract to one team
that will manage both the design
and construction in a coordinated
way to deliver the
project on time and on budget.”
The project will bolster equity,
regional connectivity and
resiliency by delivering a new
transit option for residents
and workers in the east Bronx
with four new fully accessible
Metro-North stations, at Co-Op
City, Parkchester, Morris Park
and Hunts Point. The advent of
train service to these stations
will support the local economy
and attract regional talent
by increasing accessibility to
underserved neighborhoods,
cutting commutes and introducing
reverse commuting opportunities.
The Environmental Assessment
Accelerated Placement, Accepting Applications NOW!
BRONX TIMES R 24 EPORTER, OCT. 8-14, 2021 BTR
and Section 4(f) Evaluation
were released on May
18, for public and agency comment.
And on Sept. 24, the Federal
Transit Administration
(FTA) issued a formal Finding
of No Signifi cant Impact
(FONSI) in accordance with
the National Environmental
Policy Act (NEPA), marking
the conclusion of the environmental
review. The MTA has
published a summary of comments
and responses received
during the public comment period.
“The Penn Station Access
project receiving FONSI is a
huge win for transit equity,”
said U.S. Rep. Ritchie Torres.
“With a FONSI, the project
will be able to move forward
to provide South Bronx residents
with much needed transit
services to essential business
districts in the Bronx,
Manhattan, Westchester and
Connecticut. I am encouraged
by this important step toward
ensuring equal access to mass
transit.”
The project will use Amtrak’s
existing Hell Gate Line
to access Penn Station, maximizing
the potential of existing
infrastructure, while
minimizing impacts on the
surrounding community. It
will bring the Hell Gate Line
into a state of good repair
and improve resiliency and
on-time performance for Amtrak
passengers. The project
also calls for the construction
of new electrical substations,
additional tracks within
the existing line, work to renew
bridges and upgrades to
Metro-North’s New Rochelle
Yard.
Procurement is underway
to award a design-build contract
to construct this transformative
project which will
dramatically reduce travel
times for people traveling to or
from the East Bronx.
To read the FONSI and
response-to-comments document,
and learn more about
the Penn Station Access Project,
visit www.pennstationaccess.
info.
-Bronx Times
Travelers move through the boarding area for trains during the Thanksgiving holiday travel rush at Pennsylvania
Station in New York, U.S., Nov. 27, 2019. Photo by REUTERS/Brendan McDermid
FIRST 10 ELIGIBLE
APPLICANTS FOR
SIXTH GRADE
WILL BE ACCEPTED
NOW THROUGH OCTOBER 30TH, 2021 !
For IMMEDIATE ENROLLMENT,
email: info@equalitycs.org
BRONXNEWSPAPER_FF.indd 1 9/21/21 7:20 PM
/www.pennstationac-cess.info
/www.pennstationac-cess.info
/www.pennstationac-cess.info
link
link