PennDOT is progressing on Scranton-NYC Penn Station rail corridor project, set to restore passenger service and create economic activity. Advancing to second stage for development plan, with potential completion by 2028-2029 and substantial federal funding.
PennDOT map legend (via Facebook)
A proposed restoration of passenger rail service between Scranton, Pa., and New York City cleared another hurdle in January, advancing to the next stage of a federal program designed to identify new and viable passenger train routes.
A proposed restoration of passenger rail service between Scranton, Pa. and New York City cleared another hurdle in January, advancing to the next stage of a federal program designed to identify new and viable passenger train routes.
The Scranton to New York Penn Station (NYP) Passenger Rail Corridor project is among the first five in the nation to advance to the second stage of the three-step Corridor Identification and Development Program, the Times-Tribune reported.
The second stage includes the completion of a Service Development Plan (SDP) for the proposed route and serves as a precursor to the third step, which could deliver potentially hundreds of millions of dollars for rail construction and related work in advance of the Big Apple-bound trains running again.
Larry Malski, president of the Pennsylvania Northeast Regional Railroad Authority (PNRRA) told the Scranton news outlet that his agency is making plans to begin the construction bid process, which then "allows us to start accessing, after we complete step two, the bigger amounts of funding that are out there."
As proposed, the restored service would see Amtrak passenger trains run between Scranton and Manhattan's Penn Station with stops in the Pa. towns of Mount Pocono and East Stroudsburg, as well as in the N.J. cities of Blairstown, Dover, Morristown, Montclair and Newark.
An Amtrak study released in March 2023 found that restoring such a service would generate $84 million in new economic activity annually, creating jobs on both sides of the Pa.-N.J. border.
The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) is taking the lead in developing the SDP, which will include:
• stakeholder engagement with railroads, agencies and the public;
• service options analysis and transportation planning;
• capital project identification, conceptualization and cost estimating;
• environmental analysis; and
• financial and implementation planning.
"Under Governor Josh Shapiro's leadership, PennDOT is aggressively putting additional federal and state transportation investments to work for Pennsylvanians, whether it's fixing our roads and bridges or restoring and improving passenger rail service," PennDOT Secretary Mike Carroll said in a news release. "Advancing this project ensures we will leave no stone unturned as we grow the northeastern region's economy and mobility. We are steadfast in our commitment to the public, business leaders and many more who look forward to restoring this passenger rail connection."
The route from Scranton, Pa., to New York City last served passenger trains in 1970 as part of the Erie Lackawanna Railroad. Today, the entire right-of-way is still intact, with most of it in active use by various public rail operators.
Restoring it — which could happen as early as 2028 or 2029, if plans come to fruition — has long been a goal of rail advocates and supportive elected officials alike, the Times-Tribune noted.
Much of the progress they have celebrated in recent years was made possible by the federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, a signature legislative achievement of former President Joe Biden.
A New Transit Option for Underserved Areas
The Scranton to New York-Penn Station rail corridor has been the subject of numerous studies, including the Amtrak Connects US Corridor Vision Plan, and long-range transportation proposals that show growing demand for intercity passenger rail service along a corridor that has heavy auto traffic and unpredictable travel times for commuters.
PennDOT said that upgrading the rail corridor will provide a transportation option for historically under-served northeastern Appalachian Pa. and northwestern N.J.
The corridor study and development are made possible by the Federal Railroad Administration's (FRA) corridor identification and development program in the bipartisan infrastructure law, with the goal of developing formal planning studies and performing preliminary engineering for new intercity passenger rail corridors as well as enhancements to existing routes.
The SDP scope's $500,000 investment was fully funded by the program, and the SDP development's estimated $5.46 million cost will be 90 percent federally funded. The remaining 10 percent is to be provided by PennDOT.
With Pa.'s transportation agency as the lead agency and Amtrak as the proposed operator, the owners of the route — PNRRA, New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT), New Jersey Transit (NJT), and Amtrak — are all project partners in working to restore passenger service to the corridor.
Much Track Restoration Needed in N.J.
Beginning in Scranton, the 60-mi. segment of the route in Pa. and across the Delaware River is owned by PNRRA and currently used for freight rail service between Scranton and the town of Slateford. One mile of track south of Slateford Junction was previously removed and will need to be reconstructed.
The Lackawanna Cutoff, a segment of the route between Slateford and Port Morris, N.J., carried its last freight train in 1979 as part of the Conrail network and subsequently had its track removed as well. The portion of this segment in N.J. is owned by NJDOT.
Currently, NJT is reconstructing about 7 mi. of track at the east end to extend its commuter service from Port Morris to Andover, N.J. The other 20 mi. from the Delaware River to Andover also will need to be restored, PennDOT noted.
From Port Morris, the route will run over existing NJT commuter lines to Kearny, where the route connects to Amtrak's Northeast Corridor for the last eight mi. into New York Penn Station.
After the SDP is completed and federally approved, the projects identified in the plan will begin preliminary engineering and environmental review in coordination with the Federal Railroad Administration.
Today's top stories
