Amtrak will be initiating the rehabilitation of the East River Tunnel in New York City later this year following the award of a construction contract to a Skanska E-J ERT Joint Venture. The tunnel is comprised of four tubes – two of which require significant repairs and comprehensive reconstruction following damage caused by floodwaters that entered the tunnel during Superstorm Sandy.
The East River Tunnel opened in 1910, connecting New York Penn Station (NYP) with Queens. The East River Tunnel Rehabilitation Project will demolish all existing tunnel systems down to the liner, before completely restoring both tubes that were damaged in 2012.
“The tubes making up The East River Tunnel are well over 100 years old and have deteriorated greatly over the last decade following storm damage during Superstorm Sandy," said U.S. Representative Andrew Garbarino (R-NY-02). "This kind of deterioration of our public infrastructure is exactly why I voted to deliver federal funds for desperately needed infrastructure improvements. I am pleased to see this project moving forward to increase the public safety, reliability and security of this railway tunnel that New Yorkers rely on.”
During this project, one tube will be closed at a time, minimizing service impacts while maximizing track access for construction and renewing the tunnel infrastructure to serve customers for another 100 years.
This work will involve demolishing the existing tunnel systems down to the concrete liner, followed by reconstructing and modernizing all tunnel systems, which include:
- Spot repair and patching of the concrete tunnel liner
- Reconstruction of the bench walls in a modern high-low configuration
- Conversion from ballasted track to a modern direct fixation track system with integrated drainage
- Installation of new, state-of-the-art fire and smoke detection systems
- Replacement and modernization of signal, traction power, standpipe and drainage systems
Additional work will be performed aboveground to upgrade tunnel approaches and install new signal equipment and power cables in Queens, as well as improvements to existing ventilation facilities in Manhattan and Queens.
The project will be governed by a Project Labor Agreement (PLA) established as part of a 2021 Memorandum of Understanding between Amtrak and North America’s Building Trades Unions covering Amtrak’s major civil engineering projects.
During the work, which is expected to last approximately three years, Amtrak plans to maintain the vast majority of service, with slight schedule changes for Northeast Regional and Acela trains, as well as modifications to some Long Distance and State Supported services. The project will also not result in a major disruption to LIRR or New Jersey Transit service. Amtrak and the railroad partners are coordinating closely to mitigate service impacts and will provide detailed service information via numerous channels in the coming months.
“Amtrak has taken another major step to assure the ongoing state-of-good repair of the nation’s primary passenger rail artery," said American Public Transportation Association (APTA) President and CEO Paul Skoutelas. "This transformative project is a prime example of progress made possible through the federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) that, once completed, will dramatically improve service for the millions of commuter and intercity passenger rail riders, each year, who travel between New York and New Jersey.”
