New Displays to Be Installed at Penn Station

If you’ve ever passed through Penn Station in New York, you likely joined the huddled crowds standing around the iconic board as you awaited updates on the status of your train. In January, Amtrak is replacing the board with large, new digital screens at either end of the main waiting room, and 38 additional monitor sets throughout the station, part of a new, state-of-the-art Passenger Information Display System (PIDS).

The PIDS features bright LCD displays which are easier to read, and synchronize audio and visual messaging in the station. In addition to communicating train status and boarding information, the boards will also be able to broadcast emergency and other customized communications.

Some 650,000 commuter and intercity passengers pass through Penn Station each day—twice as many people as all three New York metro area airports combined. To help ease congestion in the main hall and improve circulation, the new displays are installed at either end of the concourse to draw traffic away from the center of the room.

These improvements to Penn Station offer near-term solutions while Amtrak looks ahead to its future home in Moynihan Station, which will offer improved passenger facilities for Northeast Corridor and long distance travel, better accessibility for passengers with disabilities, and a grand train hall in the historic Farley Post Office building.