Construction on the MTA’s East Side Access project to bring LIRR trains directly to Grand Central Terminal is nearly finished, 50 years after it started, Gov. Cuomo announced Thursday. The new connection will double the LIRR's capacity into Manhattan with up to 24 trains per hour and cut travel time for Queens commuters by 40 minutes per day. Additionally, it means commuters can come into the east side of Manhattan as opposed to going to Penn Station only to have to come all the way back to the east side.
The bulk of the MTA’s remaining work on the project involves installing electrical components and testing the tracks to ensure they’re safe for operation.
The project has been a long time coming, and the grand opening is set for next year, but it could still be years before New Yorkers see its true potential. Nonetheless, we are excited to see the construction phase is finally complete!