U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy and Amtrak Special Advisor Andy Byford shared significant new milestones in the New York Penn Station Transformation Project.

The list includes:

• The selection of the AECOM-led joint venture with LiRo-Hill to provide project management services.
• NJ TRANSIT has become a key partner in the transformation.
• Amtrak has met with each prospective Master Developer to discuss their design proposals.
• Early work has begun on National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) activities and the Service Optimization Study with the Federal Railroad Administration.

“Reaching another milestone with USDOT for the Penn Station Transformation Project reflects our ongoing commitment to keeping this project right on schedule and being transparent with updates,” said Byford. “The excitement for this project continues to build with each step, and we are looking forward to continuing our momentum with more future milestones that will ultimately bring a world-class station in the heart of New York City.”

The Penn Station Project

As part of the contract, the AECOM-LiRo NYPennT Joint Venture will work with Amtrak and the selected Master Developer to completely transform Penn Station, improving safety and operational efficiency, making the system more family-friendly, accommodating increased train and passenger capacity, and delivering a world-class experience to its growing passenger base, according to Amtrak officials.

In April 2025, Secretary Duffy announced that USDOT and Amtrak would take control of the Penn Station overhaul. As part of the announcement, USDOT withdrew $72 million in grant funding from the New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA).

In May 2025, Secretary Duffy tapped Special Advisor Andy Byford to lead the charge as the project overseer through a master developer public-private partnership.

In August 2025, USDOT and Amtrak announced the project’s schedule and a $43 million federal grant to Amtrak to jumpstart the work, supporting project development, the solicitation of a master developer, and permitting, as well as some preliminary design engineering work.

In September 2025, Secretary Duffy also reclaimed management of Washington, D.C.’s Union Station to help improve travel for the American people and make the nation’s capital city safe and beautiful again.

In October 2025, USDOT and Amtrak kicked off the solicitation for the Transformation Project’s master developer, inviting interested parties to submit their Letters of Interest through Amtrak’s Procurement Portal.

In addition, Amtrak announced the selection of Hunton Andrews Kurth LLP as the project’s Legal Advisor, KPMG as the Financial Advisor, and AKRF as the project’s environmental consultant to help structure the P3 project approach and agreements, and transform the station into a modern, world-class facility.

FRA initiated the Project’s Service Optimization Study to study ways to accommodate passenger service growth at New York Penn Station and the surrounding region.

Future of the Project

In January 2026, as scheduled in the project timeline, three qualified teams have been shortlisted to compete to become the Master Developer and lead the delivery of Penn Station’s comprehensive transformation.

The list includes:

• Penn Forward Now (Fengate)
• Penn Transformation Partners (Halmar)
• Grand Penn Partners (Macquarie)

The project’s Master Developer will be selected in May and announced in June, with preliminary design and NEPA activities set to occur from Summer 2026 to the end of 2027, coinciding with the start of construction also at the end of 2027.