Amtrak officials say Penn Station repairs ahead of schedule

NEW YORK — With just two weeks to go until a deadline for major repairs at Penn Station, Amtrak’s COO Scot Naparstek told NBC 4 New York the agency is ahead of schedule and “absolutely” expects full service to be returned by the day after Labor Day, adding that commuters should expect an on-time service of more than 90%.

It’s been six weeks since Amtrak started repairs on track infrastructure below Penn Station, America’s busiest rail hub. Naparstek said week six concluded without any significant issues and that crews spent time reassembling the interlocking at Interlocking A in the western part of the station. He added that there is a possibility Amtrak might finish the work a couple of days early, on Labor Day weekend.

Earlier this month, Amtrak said this summer’s overhaul was going so well that the agency is more likely than ever to push for future repairs next year. Amtrak is only fixing a small portion of the station this summer. In addition to a possible similar disruption in 2018, there’s also the possibility of several extended service outages sometime in the future. For the full story, click here.