Amtrak to Begin $637M East River Tunnel Rehabilitation in Late 2024

A major rehabilitation of the East River Tunnel will begin later this year in New York, US, by Amtrak. Amtrak will receive a $637 million construction contract from the Skanska EJERT joint venture.

The tunnel has four tubes, two of which require major repairs and reconstruction after being damaged by floodwaters during Superstorm Sandy.

Amtrak said the East River Tunnel Rehabilitation Project will demolish all of the existing tunnel systems up to the liners before fully restoring both damaged tubes in 2012. The plan will close one tube at a time, minimizing service impacts while maximizing track access during construction and refurbishing the tunnel infrastructure to allow for service for the next hundred years.

Preparatory work is already underway at Sunnyside Yard. Construction is expected to begin in late 2024 and continue through 2027.

“This announcement brings us one step closer to renewing the East River Tunnel for a new generation of rail,” said Amtrak CEO Stephen Gardner. “We thank Senator Schumer and the Biden-Harris Administration for their support that made the renewal of this important asset possible. We also appreciate the collaboration with our partners at the MTA and NJ Transit who collaborated on this important project.”

“Together, we’re committed to delivering this important infrastructure investment for New Yorkers, New Jerseyans, and everyone else who relies on the NEC – America’s busiest rail corridor.”

The East River Tunnels (ERT) connect New York City to eastern locations through four tubes. Amtrak, Long Island Rail Road (LIRR), and NJ TRANSIT trains use them.

Opened in 1910, these tubes require extensive rehabilitation and significant upgrades to modernize the NEC’s critical infrastructure and improve reliability in a new era of rail.

The ERT Rehabilitation Project will restore two tubes damaged by Superstorm Sandy. This work is necessary to modernize the tunnel infrastructure, improve safety, reliability and security, and return the system to a state of good repair.

The project aims to demolish the existing tunnel systems down to the concrete liner, then rebuild and modernize all the tunnels. These are the following:

• Repair the tunnel liner;
• Repair the bench walls in a modern, high-low configuration, with new cable ducts;
• change from ballasted track to the current direct fixation track system;
• construct new fire and smoke detection equipment; and
• replace signals, traction power, standpipes, and drainage systems.

Work will be done in addition to the underground locations in Queens. This includes improving the tunnel route, building new signal houses and installing traction power cables and signal houses. Further work will be done at two ventilation centers in Manhattan and Queens.