Cuomo plans LIRR expansion, new Penn

As part of his agenda for 2016, Gov. Andrew Cuomo has unveiled plans to expand the Long Island Railroad, build a tunnel across the Long Island Sound and recreate Penn Station.

The ambitious plans were announced last week as Cuomo has been touring the state to promote the initiative to rebuild New York. He announced the plan for improvements to Long Island’s infrastructure at the Long Island Association’s Executive Breakfast on Jan. 5.

“Long Island’s future prosperity depends on a modern transportation network that eases congestion on our roads, improves service on the LIRR, helps this region’s economy and preserves the character of these great communities,” said Cuomo.

The plans that Cuomo announced would invest millions of dollars into Long Island in a variety of different projects. The largest of which is expanding the LIRR to add a third track between Hicksville and Floral Park on the main line.

The LIRR — the largest commuter rail line in the country — has not received any substantial improvements in decades. Because of its vast ridership, it is forced to use both tracks on the main line to run trains in the same direction during peak times.

A third track would allow more trains to travel in both directions, and would also allow train service to continue if there’s a problem on one track.

Previous attempts to add a third track were stymied by residents who were concerned about expanding the LIRR’s right of way and the eminent domain seizure of properties for construction. Under Cuomo’s plan, 50 properties would be seized, as opposed to 200 under previous plans. Only 20 of those 50 would involve residences, and the average would be just five feet of residential property.

Cuomo also said the state would fund a $5 million study to assess the feasibility of building a tunnel that would connect Long Island to either Westchester, Connecticut or The Bronx.

Also on his agenda is investing $50 million to help build a Center for Bioelectronic Medicine at the Nassau Hub. The center would study next-generation medical technology and bring hundreds of jobs to the region.

In addition, Cuomo also announced plans to rebuild Penn Station and the James A. Farley Post Office into the Empire Station Complex. According to Cuomo, the new complex would feature new amenities, increased train capacity and decreased congestion. It is expected to cost $3 billion, but Cuomo said it will be expedited by a public-private partnership that would allow construction to begin this year and be mostly complete in three years.

According to information from Cuomo, Penn Station’s underground facilities have been in constant use since it opened in 1910. It’s designed to handle 200,000 daily passengers, but actually has 650,000 using it every day, making it the busiest train station in North America.

Cuomo said the work at Penn Station would widen corridors, reconfigure ticketing and waiting areas, improve the connectivity between the underground and street levels, improve signage, simplify navigation of the facility and reduce congestion, as well as upgrade the retail stores and passenger amenities. There will also be significant exterior work done to improve the façade of the building.