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President Donald Trump's administration is taking control of the $7 billion reconstruction project for NYC's Penn Station, sidelining the city's mass transit agency, the transportation chief said. FOX 5 NY's Hayley Fixler has the story.
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Federal officials say they're taking over the Penn Station reconstruction, which is a $7 billion project that's long been in the hands of the MTA
0:07
Now, all of this happening as the Department of Transportation and the MTA keep fighting over congestion pricing in court
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Let's get right to good days. Haley Fixler, she joins us live in studio with those details. Haley, good morning
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Good morning, Tashani. Robert, yeah, the federal government is now going to handle these renovations, but Amtrak, which owns Penn Station, will oversee all of the work
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Now, the Trump administration says this move should save taxpayers about $120 million
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and that's one of the reasons officials say they're taking over. So in a statement, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, he says, quote
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the MTA's history of inefficiency, waste, and mismanagement also meant a new approach is needed
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By putting taxpayers first, we're ensuring every dollar is spent wisely to create a transit hub
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all Americans can take pride in. Now, Duffy added, quote, the days of reckless spending and blank checks are over
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Now, for years, the MTA has planned to redo Penn Station without relocating Madison Square Garden
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The plan was to also work with Amtrak and New Jersey Transit to expand the transit hub to allow
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more passengers in and out of the city Federal officials plan to combine this project under one single grant and together the Amtrak and the government they look for a developer
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and they will continue with this overhaul. Some officials say this is long overdue
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The owner is taking back the steering wheel and saying, I'm going to drive the car now
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And it's appropriate for Amtrak to play that role. They own the station. They should be the
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making these decisions. The federal government will be paying for a lot of this and providing
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financing and has the ability to do that. Kathy Hochul and other leaders say this is a victory
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She says this is something that she's wanted to happen and says that she actually asked Trump to
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pay for the project. Hochul says the use of federal funds will save New Yorkers $1.3 billion
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Now, MTA Chair Jana Lieber, he's also happy with this takeover, but he does want to have a seat at
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the table. He says, quote, as the major leaseholder in the station, we expect to participate in the
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administration in Amtrak's efforts to ensure future plans meet the needs of everyone who uses it
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Now, Duffy has said that they are working with the private sector on the project. It's unclear
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right now if there will be new renovation plans or if the old plans will continue with this federal
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oversight. Robert Tishani. A lot to watch. Haley, thank you
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