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Discussion relating to the operations of MTA MetroNorth Railroad including west of Hudson operations and discussion of CtDOT sponsored rail operations such as Shore Line East and the Springfield to New Haven Hartford Line

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 #1518377  by EuroStar
 
Backshophoss wrote: Fri Aug 23, 2019 6:59 pm Amtrak kept DV as single track,freight traffic is banned by the CR contract and the Wye is long gone due to lack of space.
This is a Back Burner project,The Hellgate project will be easier to pull off.
All true. Hudson Line Penn Access is a Metro-North project. Amtrak does not need two tracks at DV, so they did not pay for two. Why would they? Amtrak does not need two tracks at DV. Even if freight was present, what matters most for determining the need for the second track is the number (and to some extent the length) of the freight trains. For example, one freight per day clearly would not have demanded the second track. The number of trains will only meaningfully grow up to justify the second track if MN wants to run 2 or more trains per hour to Penn and at that point Metro-North will need to pay the capital costs for the extra track.

Whether the New Haven Line access to Penn is easier to pull off depends on the definition of "easier". Building the 4 proposed stations, the third track, the third rail and that bridge that Amtrak wants rebuilt for the New Haven Line does not seem easier to me when compared to building say 2 stations and the second track at DV plus the necessary switch reconfiguration. Hands down though, the New Haven Line Penn Access will see a lot more passengers, so the fact that it got prioritized over the Hudson Line Access was the correct decision.
 #1532871  by NH2060
 
SRich wrote: Tue Feb 04, 2020 9:17 am To bump this up.

MTA is considering to bring the hudson line also in Penn Station thru the empire connection.

See the boardmeeting last week
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SJ4TG97WA6g
on 55:30
How are they going to fit those extra trains on top of the NHL Penn Station trains?

If the equipment being used was utilized for a Hudson Line run and a NHL run (with dual modes + coaches) with just the crew switch at NYP being the only change then I could see the merit in this.
 #1532881  by NaugyRR
 
I wonder if Amtrak is going to trade some trains for Grand Central access
 #1532924  by SRich
 
The reason why Amtrak left GCT is cost of maintaining 2 stations. If don’t think that Amtrak wil be back in GCT except for emergencies. If MNRR is using the empire connection for Penn Acces i guess it wil be from LIRR slots.
 #1532931  by DutchRailnut
 
it was a federal mandate to consolidate the New York operation and part of funding to purchase the west side freight line . it was a cost cutting mandated by government as part of North East reorganization act if I am not mistaken.
 #1532959  by Backshophoss
 
Hudson Line access will be limited to 2-3 push-pull sets with dual modes rigged for LIRR 3rd rail if there is any service from POK.
Most of the service will be from the New Haven Line side.
To rebuild the 3rd rail from DV is not cost effective at this time.
IF Gateway is built,NJT will use the empty slots the LIRR leaves open.