MTA Unveils Grand Central Madison Escalators, Elevator

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) unveiled two escalators and one elevator connecting Grand Central Madison’s Long Island Rail Road Concourse with Metro-North Railroad’s main concourse at Grand Central Terminal.

The Grand Central Escalators ascend into Metro-North’s main concourse near Tracks 39 through 42, near 43rd Street, in the Biltmore Room, according to MTA's news release.

“The Biltmore connection links the old and the new – a legendary space that harkens back to Gotham’s celebrated past opening to a glorious and expansive new space,” said Catherine Rinaldi, Metro-North Railroad president. “LIRR customers can now enjoy the historic architecture of the Biltmore Room as part of their daily experience, and the space itself has been returned to its original purpose.” 

MTA's Improved Ridership

The reopening of the Biltmore Room comes after both railroads record their best month since 2020.

Preliminary ridership statistics indicate that in April, both the LIRR and Metro-North Railroad carried a combined 9.46 million customers and posted their highest average weekday ridership since the pandemic began.

On an average weekday in April, the LIRR carried 200,915 customers.

Metro-North carried 180,174 customers on an average weekday in April. On April 18, Metro-North reached a pandemic-era ridership record with 194,549 customers. The record was broken a day later, on April 19, when Metro-North carried 195,086 customers.

The consecutive ridership records culminated in the railroad reaching its three-day ridership high since the pandemic of 193,111.