Cuomo Asks Trump for Help on Penn Station Nightmare

What to Know

The FRA found numerous maintenance issues at Penn Station
Derailments, signal problems, a power failure and other issues have plagued Penn Station in recent weeks, wreaking havoc on commutes
On Thursday, governors Cuomo and Christie sent Amtrak a joint letter saying a private company should run the station

Gov. Andrew Cuomo asked President Donald Trump to step in and provide federal funding for the beleaguered Penn Station.

In a letter, Cuomo called the deplorable conditions at Penn Station, which handles a daily flow of 600,000 passengers, an emergency that has "reached a tipping point."

Service will be cut for about six weeks to repair the problems. Cutting the service has "created both a short-term crisis and dramatically exposed the system's chronic problems," Cuomo wrote.

Gov. Cuomo calls on President Trump for federal help with Penn Station.

Federal money would help with short-term construction, transportation alternatives and the facilitation of a long-term resolution for Penn Station, according to the letter.

The Federal Railroad Administration joined Amtrak and New York state inspectors on a review of all 21 tracks following two derailments at Penn Station in Manhattan. The inspections found maintenance issues including loose or missing track clamps, bolts or braces and insufficient fasteners in track segment or rail joints.

Commuters endured yet more service problems and overcrowding at Penn Station this week. As conditions worsen, governors Cuomo and Christie proposed bringing in a private company to operate it instead of Amtrak. Andrew Siff reports.

The railroad administration confirmed what Amtrak, elected officials and hundreds of thousands of commuters at the nation's busiest rail station already knew: Immediate track maintenance and repair efforts are needed at Penn Station.

Two derailments in the last several weeks, a power failure, signal problems and other issues at Penn Station have pushed Amtrak to begin replacing aging tracks and other equipment at the station, a critical part of travel on the Northeast Corridor, between Washington, D.C., and Boston.

A bipartisan delegation of New Jersey lawmakers rode a special Amtrak glass-window observation car deep in the bowels of the tunnel under the Hudson River going into New York Penn Station, an aging facility that’s had minimal investment for decades. Brian Thompson has the exclusive first photos.

Cuomo and Gov. Chris Christie called for a private operator to take over operations at Penn Station from Amtrak, which the New York governor relayed in his statement to Trump.

“As a New Yorker, I think you know the severity of the situation and you know that if the state has the financial and operating support, we will get the job done," Cuomo wrote.

Gov. Cuomo and Gov. Christie are teaming up to say Amtrak move aside and Amtrak released a statement on that proposal. Katherine Creag reports.