$2.8B seals Metro-North access to NY Penn Station
New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority has approved a design-build contract for the Penn Station Access project, which will bring Metro-North service to Penn Station via the existing Amtrak Northeast Corridor route over Hell Gate Bridge. The project is estimated to take 63 months and cost $2.87 billion. The contract was awarded just days after Amtrak agreed to contribute $500 million to the project. It will add four new Metro-North stations and is estimated to reduce commute times by up to 75 minutes for some passengers. [trains.com]
Amtrak leadership to change in January
Amtrak Chief Executive Bill Flynn will retire next month as the passenger rail company begins a big expansion of operations funded by Congress. Amtrak President Stephen Gardner will succeed him effective Jan. 17, becoming the company’s fifth CEO since 2016. Flynn, 68, has overseen the railroad since April 2020 and steered it through the COVID-19 crisis and a massive falloff in demand. Amtrak is now poised to receive billions in funding which will enable the expansion of service, upgrading of key stations and the purchase of a new fleet from Siemens Mobility. [reuters.com]
Israel approves high-speed Haifa-Tel Aviv rail proj
Israel’s National Infrastructure Planning Council has approved a project for a rail connection between Haifa and Tel Aviv that is expected to cut travel time between the two cities to just 30 minutes. As part of the project, two underground lines will be added to the existing surface level routes in Haifa. Travel times are estimated to be 54 minutes from Nahariya to Tel Aviv instead of the hour and 40 minutes of today’s journey. Haifa to Tel Aviv, with one stop in Hadera, will be just half an hour. The project is expected to cost NIS 12 billion ($3.9 billion). [timesofisrael.com]
Berlin subway introduces edible hemp tickets
Berlin’s public transport operator BVG has introduced an edible “hemp ticket” which it jokes can help alleviate the stress of travel at Christmas and take the edge off Berliners’ infamous crabbiness. The transport company’s cheeky promotional campaign taps into news that Germany could become the first European country to legalize cannabis and authorize its sale for recreational purposes. The BVG says its ticket contains no forbidden substances and is made of edible paper drizzled with hemp oil which comes from the seeds of the cannabis plant. [reuters.com]
NYC tap-and-go fare to max at $33 per week
New York’s MTA board has approved a plan to implement a pilot program to cap fares for users of the OMNY tpuchless tap-and-go payment system. Starting in March, the pilot program will establish a maximum transit fare per week — if a rider spends at least $33 on 12 rides over a 7-day period, everything after that will be free. The program will essentially mirror the MTA’s weekly unlimited MetroCard, which costs $33. [ny1.com]
