The Trump Administration and the Department of Transportation has released the first renderings of the revamped and reimagined Penn Station in the heart of New York City—and gold accents are a focal point of the design.
A new dedicated website with the project renderings was released on Monday, as the DOT announced that a project lead and developer had been chosen to completely transform the historic station.
The redesign, according to DOT and Amtrak, which owns the station, will make the station “safer, more spacious, and better connected, while elevating it into a modern civic landmark.”
Officials said the station revamp won’t affect the adjacent Madison Square Garden, and existing railroads will continue to operate.
The plan to rebuild or renovate Penn Station has been in the works for several years, but the project was ultimately taken over by the Trump Administration last April an entrusted to Amtrak and the DOT. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy awarded Amtrak a $43 million grant to kickstart redevelopment, and later contributed an additional $200 million to “support critical design and permitting work.”
The newly designed Penn Station should solve a lot of gripes with the building’s current design, which is more utilitarian and practical rather than grandiose and breathtaking like its counterpart, Grand Central Station.
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The new version of the station is single level with a concourse that is compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act. It will features bars, restaurants, sops and customer services on one accessible level, officials said.
Specific design elements include a “grand entrance” on Eighth Avenue, expanded track capacity with the introduction of some through-running rail lines, massive changes to the station’s exterior and subterranean structure.
Amtrak and DOT officials said the new Penn Station will replace “cramped, decrepit walkways with open, beautiful concourses” of stone and bronze—although, renderings released on the new dedicated website look a bit more golden than bronze… and there’s a lot of it.
Railings, pillars, accent walls, information booths, signage and a large hanging clock have all gotten the aureate treatment, renderings show.
The president, of course, is known for his love of all things gold and, oftentimes, gold-plated.
“The Golden Age of Transportation is coming thanks to President Trump,” Secretary Duffy said in a news release. “He had a vision to transform this dirty, falling-apart station in the middle of his hometown into a state-of-the-art transit hub that millions can enjoy for generations to come. American families deserve a safe, efficient, and clean commute to their homes, jobs, and churches.”
Duffy said the renderings prove that the Trump Administration is committed to turning Penn Station into a landmark travel destination, and that the new look and improvements will “completely transform” New York City.
In May, development and construction firms Halmar and Skanska were chosen to be the construction project’s master developer. The union-workforce construction is scheduled to begin by the end of 2027, although the public can comment on the design beginning this summer.
Penn Station is due for a facelift
The original New York Pennsylvania Station was first opened in 1910 in a stunning modern marvel made of stone and granite that was heavily influenced by Roman architecture. The new renderings appear to have restored some of those statement pieces, including returning a set of towering columns to the exterior.
Designed and realized by the American architecture firm McKim, Mead & White, the station was in operation for more than 50 years and grew to become the busiest train depot in America.
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Like Grand Central Station, Penn Station became a national landmark and gathering space that attracted travelers from around the globe.
But in the 1960s, as American consumers embraced the automobile and dependency on train travel waned, priorities shifted. In 1963, the above ground portion of Pennsylvania Station was razed, much to the dismay of preservationists, in order to build Madison Square Garden topside.
The underground portion was renovated and eventually become the Penn Station we know now.
Throughout the years, there have been multiple proposals to renovate or rebuild Penn Station, many of which would have involved the closure or demolition of MSG, which was a nonstarter for many New Yorkers.
Current Penn Station has myriad issues, as many buildings of its time have. And a major renovation is desperately needed to modernize America’s busiest train station.
The Trump Administration took control of the project last year, and has been trying to accelerate the revitalization timeline. It will be among the largest and most consequential transit projects during Duffy’s tenure at the Transportation Department.
How the public reacts to the specific design proposals, gold accents and all, will be the first hurdle the project managers face. But knowing this administration, public feedback to changes of the nation’s landmarks might simply fall on deaf ears.
As mentioned above, a groundbreaking on the new Penn Station is scheduled for late 2027. The Department of Transportation says construction could be completed by 2036.
