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Municipal Art Society of New York

Does the U.S. Have a “Third World Transportation System”?

11:28 AM EDT on May 14, 2008

Funding shortfalls and logistical hurdles may be delaying plans to replace Penn Station, but the Municipal Art Society's campaign for Moynihan Station is not letting up. The MAS has been on a roll this spring, hosting a series of events related to the West Side project. This video, posted yesterday, features former Washington Post reporter Don Phillips and Metro-North
lawyer Walter Zullig, Jr. discussing the project within the context of the national and regional rail networks. From the MAS recap:

Phillips provided a global overview of the transportation crisis anddiscussed how Europe, Asia, and even Mexico are placing massiveinvestments in their infrastructure. France, for instance, is buildingrail tunnels “like crazy” for trains that, in some cases, will becarrying trucks. Iran is on a rail building boom. And Mexico isbuilding a huge new port and rail network to compete with the Port ofLos Angeles.

But “we have no vision at all,” said Phillips. “All we can say now is no new taxes.”

Rail enthusiasts jonesing for pictures of gorgeous new stations will get their fix in the first part of the video, which shows some recently completed projects -- in Europe, of course. If the Port Authority takes over the Moynihan Station project, might New York finally get a palatial new station of its own?

Ben Fried
Ben Fried started as a Streetsblog reporter in 2008 and led the site as editor-in-chief from 2010 to 2018. He lives in Ditmas Park, Brooklyn, with his wife.

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