Pennsylvania Station (New York City) facts for kids

Outside of Pennsylvania Station

Pennsylvania Station (often called Penn Station) is a very busy train station in New York City. It's the busiest train station in the United States, with over 600,000 people using it every day. Many of these people are commuters traveling to and from work or school. The station is located in Midtown Manhattan, right under Madison Square Garden. You can find it between Seventh Avenue and Eighth Avenue, and between 31st Street and 34th Street.

The Story of Penn Station

The old station, as it looked in 1911

This station was built by the Pennsylvania Railroad company. Before the early 1900s, trains from the west couldn't go directly into New York City. This was because the Hudson River was in the way! People had to get off their trains in Jersey City, New Jersey, and then take a ferry boat across the river to reach New York City.

Building the Tunnels

Everything changed when the Pennsylvania Railroad decided to dig tunnels. They dug two tunnels under the Hudson River and four more under the East River to Queens. These tunnels and the brand new station in the heart of New York City were finished in 1910. The whole project cost about $114 million back then, which would be around $2.7 billion today! The first train used the new station in November 1910.

A Busy Hub and New Beginnings

Over the years, more and more railroad companies started using Penn Station. During World War II, the station was incredibly busy, with over 100 million people passing through it each year. However, as air travel became popular and new highways were built, fewer people traveled by train.

In 1963, the original station was taken down. A new station was built in its place, with Penn Plaza and Madison Square Garden built on top of it. The new Penn Station opened in 1968 and is still a major transportation hub today.

How Penn Station Works

Inside the current station in 1974

Penn Station is completely underground. All trains that use it must run on electric power. This is because the station and its tunnels cannot handle the exhaust fumes from diesel trains. The station has 21 tracks and 11 platforms. Up to 1,200 trains can pass through the station every day!

Train Services Available

Amtrak owns Penn Station and offers many train services to cities across the U.S. You can catch long-distance trains that go as far as Chicago, New Orleans, and Miami. From those cities, you can even connect to trains that travel all the way to the Pacific Coast, reaching cities like Seattle, Los Angeles, and San Diego. Amtrak also has high-speed trains called the Acela Express. These trains travel quickly to cities like Boston, Philadelphia, and Washington, D.C..

Commuter Trains and Local Connections

Two main commuter rail services also use Penn Station:

• The Long Island Rail Road, run by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), takes people to many places on Long Island to the east.
• New Jersey Transit runs trains into New Jersey to the west.

There are also plans for Metro-North trains to serve Penn Station in the future. These trains currently use Grand Central Terminal, which is a few blocks away.

Besides trains, Penn Station connects to the New York City Subway at several stations, including 34th Street and Herald Square. Another train system, PATH, has a station at 33rd Street. From there, you can catch trains to Jersey City and Newark. Many bus companies also serve the station.

Images for kids

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  Pennsylvania Station Excavation by George Bellows (c. 1907–1908). Brooklyn Museum.

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  Penn Station, exterior, 1911

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  Penn Station, interior, 1935–1938

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  The Long Island Rail Road concourse

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  The main concourse

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  The 7th Avenue and 33rd Street entrance

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  The West End Concourse

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  A crowded LIRR concourse

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  A rendering of the final design of the 33rd Street pedestrian plaza

See also

In Spanish: Estación Pensilvania (Nueva York) para niños