Penn Station is one of the busiest rail hubs in the world, located inside Pennsylvania Plaza between Seventh and Eighth Avenues in Chelsea on the...
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The original Pennsylvania Station was an ornate station building designed by McKim, Mead, and White and considered a masterpiece of the Beaux-Arts style. Completed in 1910, it enabled direct rail access to New York City from the south for the first time.
Completed in 1910, the original Penn Station was intended to symbolize not only its powerful corporate owner but also New York's status as the most vital city in a nation that was becoming a political and economic superpower.
Welcoming passengers taking more than 650,000 daily commuter, transit and intercity trips on Amtrak, NJ TRANSIT, Long Island Rail Road and the subway, the Moynihan Train Hall / New York Penn Station complex is the busiest rail hub in North America and a gateway to the nation's largest city.
Demolition began in 1963, and was complete by 1966. Popular perceptions of the history of New York City attribute the birth of the preservation movement and the local landmarks law to the demolition of Pennsylvania Station.
By the time the structure was set to be demolished, it was dilapidated due to poor maintenance and alterations, and the architectural richness of the building likely went unnoticed by the vast number of commuters who walked through it daily.
At the same time, Madison Square Garden, a high-rise office and sports complex that still stands today, was built in its place. Though the Penn Station terminal was demolished, the original 1900s tunnels, tracks, platforms and electric traction continue to be used today.
Many of the lines don't make any money or are operated at a loss. To accommodate the money-losing routes, Amtrak uses profits from its popular lines, such as the Northeast Corridor. Since this is one of the most popular routes, Amtrak can charge higher prices and send those profits to other, less profitable lines.