Amtrak: Gird for summer fixes

THIS YEAR, expect the Summer of Heck.

Amtrak will be doing repairs again in the warm months, but the national rail agency says it won’t be the nightmarish rushhour emergency work done during last year’s Summer of Hell at Penn Station. LIRR and NJ Transit trains are anticipating no major changes to service. The new repairs — expected to cost between $45 million and $50 million — will focus on the Empire tunnel and the Spuyten Duyvil Bridge, which connect upstate with the city, and Penn’s Track 19.

The work on the Empire Connection and Spuyten Duyvil span will take place from May 26 to Sept. 4, requiring Amtrak diversions to Grand Central Terminal from Penn Station. The Track 19 work will take place from June 8 to July 20.

There will be no changes to NJ Transit service at Penn Station. The Long Island Rail Road will keep the same schedule it has been using for Amtrak repairs this year, just with new track assignments.

“Amtrak is continuing to prioritize updating the infrastructure in and around New York Penn Station to improve our service reliability,” said Scot Naparstek, Amtrak’s executive operations chief.