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APPENDIX A 

SPECIAL HUDSON YARDS DISTRICT


APPENDIX B 
Joel P. Ettinger
Executive Director

September 11, 2009

Bronson Fox
Partnership for New York City
One Battery Park Plaza
New York, NY 10004

Re: Certification of Metropolitan Planning Organization Criteria for TIGER Applications

Dear Potential Tiger Grant Applicant:

This letter is in response to the June 17, 2009 Federal Register Notice of Funding Availability for TIGER grants,
pages 28760-61, http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2009/pdf/E9-14262.pdf, which indicates that awarded TIGER
applications must be included in all relevant metropolitan planning documents. The New York Metropolitan
Transportation Council (NYMTC) which is the Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) for New York City,
Long Island and the lower Hudson Valley will take all of the steps necessary to incorporate Moynihan Station
Project-Phase 1 in the metropolitan planning process if the United States Department of Transportation
(USDOT) selects it to receive TIGER funding. Specifically, NYMTC will amend its Regional Transportation
Plan, Transportation Improvement Program and review Moynihan Station Project-Phase 1 for compliance with
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project award. To further facilitate the alignment of Moynihan Station Project-Phase 1 with the MPO process,
NYMTC will as necessary, conduct public review and interagency consultations for all potential TIGER
projects within our planning boundaries during the USDOT selection process to ensure inclusion of all selected
projects in the relevant planning documents prior to award.

If you need additional information, please contact Angelina Foster of my staff at, afoster1@dot.state.ny.us.

Sincerely,

Joel P. Ettinger
Executive Director
NYMTC
September 14, 2009

Mr. Robin Stout


President
Moynihan Station Development Corporation
633 Third Avenue
New York, NY 10017

Dear Mr. Stout,

I am writing on behalf of the Partnership for New York City in support of the
New York State Empire State Development Corporation (ESDC) application for
funding from the Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery
(TIGER) program for the Moynihan Station project in New York City.

The Partnership for New York City is a nonprofit organization comprised of


business leaders from all sectors of New York’s $1 trillion regional economy. We
are dedicated to maintaining New York as the world capital of finance,
commerce and innovation.

As the nation emerges from the current economic crisis, a strong recovery will be
based in part on strategic investments in key infrastructure projects such as
Moynihan Station. Critical to a competitive future is the availability of modern
and efficient transportation hubs. This is especially important in urban centers
like the New York City Metro Region, which depends more heavily on public
transit than anywhere else in the country.

Moynihan Station will have a significant impact on the region’s economy by


creating new jobs and bringing in further public and private investment. Once
completed, the new Moynihan Station will create a vibrant center for commuters,
with grand public space, retail and amenities akin to Grand Central Terminal. It
will also reinforce two other major transportation projects on the drawing board
on the Far West Side of Manhattan: the extension of the No. 7 line, which will
serve to further open up the Far West Side, and a much needed second
commuter rail tunnel underneath the Hudson, known as Access to the Region’s
Core (ARC).
Mr. Robin Stout
September 14, 2009
Page 2

And, just yesterday, Amtrak announced that they have also agreed to use the
proposed terminal; thus, the new Moynihan Station will also be the regional hub
for long distance train travel on the eastern seaboard.

Taken together, these three projects will help open up the last great frontier for
development on the island of Manhattan—for offices, residences, tourism and
conventions. Combined with the planned expansion of the Jacob K. Javits
Convention Center, the Far West Side promises to become the logical extension
of the largest central business district in the country.

We urge support of ESDC’s application for TIGER funding for Moynihan Station,
which is a key component of the city’s and region’s economic recovery and
future growth.

Sincerely,

Kathryn Wylde
President & CEO
Steven Spinola
President

September 14, 2009

Mr. Robin Stout


President
Moynihan Station Development Corporation
633 Third Avenue
New York, NY 10017

Dear Mr. Stout:

The Real Estate Board of New York is a broadly based trade association with
approximately 12,000 owners, builders, managers, brokers and other real estate
professionals active in New York.

We strongly support the New York State Department of Transportation’s application to


the United State Department of Transportation for funding under the American
Recovery and Reinvesment Act Transportation Investment Generating Economic
Recovery (TIGER) Discretionary Grants Program for Phase 1 of the Moynihan Station
project.

Penn Station is a crucial transportation hub in the city’s Midtown Central Business
District. Serving an estimated 640,000 passengers from the Long Island Rail Road,
New Jersey Transit, and Amtrak, the station is heavily trafficked and is a critical link to
the city’s subway system.

Notwithstanding its role as the vital center of rail transit in New York City, Penn Station
has serious deficiencies that impair its service delivery and more importantly are
obstacles to future growth in the area around, and to the West of, the station.

A few years ago, the city completed a major rezoning (Hudson Yards) that provided
significant expansion potential for Midtown’s central business district. This rezoned
area including Penn Station and the Farley Post Office Building as well as additional
areas to the west created the opportunity for more than 40 million square feet of
commercial and residential development. A major commercial corridor of this
expansion area was along West 34th Street. The western rail yard is presently being
rezoned which would add to the growth potential of this area.
The first phase of the Penn Station project proposed by the Port Authority is important
to addressing the existing deficiencies, a necessary first step in the Station’s expansion
and essential if the commercial and residential development anticipated for the Hudson
Yards area is to be realized.

The start of Phase 1 would provide needed financial investment, job creation and tax
revenue for the city and the state. More importantly, it would send a loud and clear
message that the lynchpin of development in Hudson Yards, namely significant
improvements and expansion of Penn Station, is on its way to becoming a reality.

Starting the work now when such construction activity is desperately needed would be
a catalyst for sustained development in Hudson Yards when the financial markets return
to a more traditional level of activity.

For these reasons we support the TIGER application of State DOT.

Sincerely,

Steven Spinola

2
Regional Plan Association, Municipal Art Society, New York Landmarks Conservancy,  
General Contractors Association, the Honorable Scott Stringer, the Honorable Richard Gottfried,  
the Honorable Tom Duane, New York Building Congress, New York State Laborers,  
Tri‐State Transportation Campaign, Permanent Citizens Advisory Committee,  
National Trust for Historic Preservation, Preservation League of New York State,  
Transportation Alternatives, American Planning Association New York Chapter  

 
Robin Stout                September 14, 2009 
President, Moynihan Station Development Corporation 
633 Third Avenue, 36th flr. 
New York, NY 10017 
 
 
Dear Mr. Stout: 
We write to support the Moynihan Station Development Corporation’s application for a TIGER 
grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation for Phase I of Moynihan Station.    
Moynihan Station is one of the most critical civic and infrastructure projects planned for the 
New York Region this decade. It represents an opportunity to increase rail ridership, promote 
economic growth, jumpstart the development of the Far West Side, create thousands of 
construction jobs, and breathe new life into the historic Farley building.  
Phase I of the project will have significant impacts and is the necessary first step to completing 
overall project.  As an independent project, the merits are clear: fuller and better use will be 
made of the existing platforms and by pushing the boundaries of station entrance and egress to 
the western side of the station, transit‐oriented development can begin along Ninth Avenue. 
Additionally, we believe an investment in Moynihan Station can be leveraged in several ways: 
Accommodating Demand 
Amtrak's Northeast Corridor Master Plan envisions huge increases in demand in the corridor 
over the next decades. Yet this level of growth cannot be supported by the existing facilities 
(both the track configuration and Penn Station itself). If Amtrak is to grow as its master plan 
envisions ‐‐ or even faster, which is a possibility given the phenomenal increases in demand in 
the last couple of years and the additional attention and funding coming from the federal 
government ‐‐ new track capacity and new station capacity must be added to Penn Station / 
Moynihan.  Moynihan Station is designed to increase Amtrak's peak hour capacity from 1,600 
seats to 4,000.  
Building the Amtrak Brand 
Moynihan Station will become the flagship station for the Northeast Corridor, and will help build 
brand image and identity as a larger and larger share of long‐distance travelers choose rail over 
air or cars.  
Increasing Reliability 
Moynihan Station will also significantly improve the system's reliability and recovery potential in 
case of a track outage or other problem. This is very significant and arguably rail's biggest 
competitive advantage over air in the North East Corridor. 
Friends of Moynihan Station • c/o Regional Plan Association
4 Irving Place, 7th Floor • New York, NY 10003 • (212) 253-5981
moynihanstation@rpa.org
The Friends of Moynihan Station, a coalition of leading civic organizations, business groups and 
elected officials, offer our support for this application and the entire project, and stand ready to 
offer any assistance in making Moynihan Station a reality.  
Sincerely,  

Bob Yaro, Regional Plan  Vin Cipolla, Municipal Art  Peg Breen, New York 


Association  Society  Landmarks Conservancy 

Felice Farber, General  and the rest of the Friends of   
Contractors Association  Moynihan Station 

 
 
cc: Senator Charles Schumer 
cc: Senator Kirsten Gillibrand 
cc: Andrew Lynn, Port Authority of New York and New Jersey 
cc: Timothy Gilchrest, Office of New York State Governor David Paterson 
cc: Christopher Ward, Port Authority of New York and New Jersey 

Friends of Moynihan Station • c/o Regional Plan Association


4 Irving Place, 7th Floor • New York, NY 10003 • (212) 253-5981
moynihanstation@rpa.org
BUILDING & AFFILIATED WITH THE
BUILDING CONSTRUCTION TRADES DEPARTMENT

CONSTRUCTION OF WASHINGTON D.C.

BUILDING AND CONSTRUCTION TRADES COUNCIL


TRADES COUNCIL OF NEW YORK STATE
Of GREATER NEW YORK AMERICAN FEDERATION OF LABOR OF CONGRESS
OF INDUSTRIAL ORGANIZATION

GARY LaBARBERA

PRESIDENT

September 14, 2009

Mr. Robin Stout

President

Moynihan Station Development Corporation

633 Third Avenue

New York, NY 10017

Dear Mr. Stout:

The Building and Construction Trades Council (BCTC) of Greater New York is an umbrella

organization which consists of local affiliates of 15 national and international unions representing

100,000 working men and women in New York City.

We write in strong support of the New York State Department of Transportation's application to

the United State Department of Transportation for funding under the American Recovery and

Reinvesment Act Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER)

Discretionary Grants Program for Phase 1 of the Moynihan Station project.

Penn Station is a crucial transportation hub in the city's Midtown central Business District.

Serving an estimated 640,000 passengers from the Long Island Rail Road, New Jersey Transit,

and Amtrak, the station is heavily trafficked and is a critical link to the city's subway system.

Notwithstanding its role as the vital center of rail transit in New York City, Penn Station has

serious deficiencies that impair its functionality and its ability to grow with the region over time.

The TIGER funding would help to jumpstart Phase I of this project, proViding needed financial

investment, job creation and tax revenue for the city and the state.

Perhaps most importantly for the BCTC, the Moynihan Station project would create jobs at a time

when we need them most. Phase I, for which the TIGER money would be used, would create 820

construction jobs and $55.2 million in wages for our workers.

This project is vital for our members and for the region, and we support the TIGER application

with no reservations.

Sincerely,

\~~~~
71 WEST 23rd STREET • SUITE 501-03 0 NEW YORK, NEW YORK 10010
TEL. (212) 647·0700 • FAX (212) 647·0705

~
;171-10
September 14, 2009

Robin Stout
President
Moynihan Station Development Corp.
633 Third Avenue
New York, NY 10017

Dear Ms. Stout,

I am writing to you in support of the construction of Phase 1 of the Moynihan Station project.

The Building Trades Employers’ Association (BTEA) is an organization representing 28 union


contractor associations and over 1,700 construction managers, general contractors, and specialty
trade contractors doing business in New York City.

The BTEA supports this project in a time when jobs are needed the most. The Phase 1 of
Moynihan Station will employ hundreds of New Yorkers. This project will contribute millions
of dollars in taxes to the state and the city. This is much needed considering that the city and
state budgets predict deficits of billions of dollars for 2010.

A transportation hub is critical to any large city. It develops a perception and a reputation
worldwide. If New York City wants to remain as one of the top cities in the world it must be
capable of attracting individuals and must offer easy accessible transportation to and from the
city.

Thank you.

Sincerely,

President & CEO

LJC:JLC
APPENDIX C 
MOYNIHAN STATION
EMISSIONS BENEFITS OF WEST END CONCOURSE EXTENSION

Analysis Year: 2015

ASSUMPTIONS FOR PASSENGER VEHICLE EMISSIONS REDUCTIONS:


Average Vehicle Occupancy: 1.351 passengers/car (Source: Average Vehicle Occupancy Data Region 11 Winter 1994/1995,
NYSDOT Memorandum from B. Kirch to L. Malsam, November 16, 1995)

Emission Factors: Average Speed* Emission Factors**


Summer (NOx, Winter (CO,
VOCs) PM) NOx VOC CO PM10 PM2.5
Manhattan 9.2 10.7 0.383 0.556 9.380 0.0248 0.0113
Rest of Region 27.9 31.8 0.233 0.338 8.436 0.0248 0.0113

Amtrak - Empire Line


Assumed Average Manhattan Trip Distance: -1 mile, arterial roadways
Assumed Average Trip Distance in Rest of Region: -49.75 miles, freeway (average of four car routes within region)
1kg= 1.10E-03 tons

AMTRAK
Annual Induced Annual Reduced Vehicle Annual Reduced VMT (vehicle- Total Annual Reductions (kilograms) Total Annual Reductions (tons)
Ridership*** Trips miles) NOx VOC CO PM10 PM2.5 NOx VOC CO PM10 PM2.5
Manhattan -10,978 -4.2 -6.1 -103 -0.27 -0.12 0.00 -0.01 -0.11 -0.0003 -0.0001
14,831 10,978 Rest of Region -546,155 -127 -184 -4,607 -13.54 -6.17 -0.14 -0.20 -5.08 -0.0149 -0.0068
-131 -190 -4,710 -13.82 -6.30 -0.14 -0.21 -5.19 -0.0152 -0.0069

Amtrak - North on Northeast Corridor


Assumed Average Manhattan Trip Distance: -1 mile, arterial roadways
Assumed Average Trip Distance in Rest of Region: -40.75 miles, freeway (all autos and SUVs, average of two car routes within region)

AMTRAK
Annual Induced Annual Reduced Vehicle Annual Reduced VMT (vehicle- Total Annual Reductions (kilograms) Total Annual Reductions (tons)
Ridership*** Trips miles) NOx VOC CO PM10 PM2.5 NOx VOC CO PM10 PM2.5
Manhattan -28,708 -11 -16 -269 -0.71 -0.32 -0.01 -0.02 -0.30 -0.0008 -0.0004
38,784 28,708
Rest of Region -1,169,847 -272 -395 -9,868 -29.01 -13.22 -0.30 -0.44 -10.88 -0.0320 -0.0146
-283 -411 -10,138 -29.72 -13.54 -0.31 -0.45 -11.17 -0.0328 -0.0149

Amtrak - South on Northeast Corridor


Assumed Average Trip Distance: -50 miles, arterial roadways

AMTRAK
Annual Induced Annual Reduced Vehicle Annual Reduced VMT (vehicle- Total Reductions (kilograms) Total Reductions (tons)
Ridership*** Trips miles) NOx VOC CO PM10 PM2.5 NOx VOC CO PM10 PM2.5
38,784 28,708 -1,435,395 -550 -798 -13,464 -35.60 -16.22 -0.61 -0.88 -14.84 -0.0392 -0.0179

NJ Transit
Assumed Average Trip Distance: -35 miles, arterial roadways

NJ TRANSIT
Annual Induced Annual Reduced Vehicle Annual Reduced VMT (vehicle- Total Annual Reductions (kilograms) Total Annual Reductions (tons)
Ridership*** Trips miles) NOx VOC CO PM10 PM2.5 NOx VOC CO PM10 PM2.5
160,000 118,431 -4,145,078 -1,589 -2,303 -38,880 -102.80 -46.84 -1.75 -2.54 -42.86 -0.1133 -0.0516

*Speed data from NYMTC's March 2009 Conformity Regional Analysis (2012 data)
** MOBILE6.2 emission factors for LDGV (includes autos and SUVs)
***Mode Shift Estimates, September 2009

Annual Reductions of Criteria Pollutants (tons)


NOx VOC CO PM10 PM2.5
Empire Line Reduced Passenger Vehicle Emissions -0.1447 -0.2100 -5.1919 -0.0152 -0.0069
North on NE Corridor Reduced Passenger Vehicle Emissions -0.3121 -0.4529 -11.1746 -0.0328 -0.0149
South on NE Corridor Reduced Passenger Vehicle Emissions -0.6065 -0.8791 -14.8409 -0.0392 -0.0179
NJ Transit Reduced Passenger Vehicle Emissions -1.7513 -2.5386 -42.8570 -0.1133 -0.0516
Total -2.8 -4.1 -74.1 -0.20 -0.09

Annual Reduction of CO2

Annual trips via rail diverted from autos (Amtrak): 92,400


Average trip length assumed (miles): -150
Annual trips via rail diverted from autos (NJ Transit): 160,000
Average trip length assumed (miles): -35

Total VMT diverted from autos: -14,404,145 (assumes total average trip length)
Gallons Gasoline: -651,771 (assumes 22.1 mpg)
CO2 (tons): -6,378 (assumes 8,877 grams of CO2 per gallon of gasoline)

Total: -6,378 tons CO2 per year


APPENDIX D 
Moynihan Station Project-Phase I: Economic Benefit-Cost
Analysis Report

September 2009
TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. INTRODUCTION AND SUMMARY OF KEY RESULTS ................................................. 1


2. KEY ANALYTICAL ASSUMPTIONS................................................................................. 2
Real Discount Rate ..................................................................................................................... 2
Evaluation Period........................................................................................................................ 2
Travel Time Savings Considerations and Value of Time Assumptions ..................................... 3
General Discussion of Travel Time Savings .......................................................................... 3
Value of Time Assumptions ................................................................................................... 3
Annualizing Factor Assumptions................................................................................................ 3
3. ESTIMATED TRANSPORTATION BENEFITS ................................................................. 4
4. BENEFITS INCLUDED IN THE EVALUATION ............................................................. 12
Travel Time Savings ................................................................................................................. 12
Reductions in Vehicle Operating Costs and Auto Ownership Costs........................................ 13
Parking Cost Savings ................................................................................................................ 14
Accident Cost Savings .............................................................................................................. 14
Environmental Benefits ............................................................................................................ 15
5. SENSITIVITY SCENARIOS............................................................................................... 16
6. ECONOMIC COSTS AND ASSUMPTIONS INCLUDED IN THE EVALUATION....... 17
7. APPENDIX - KEY BENEFIT-COST EVALUATION MEASURES................................. 18
Net Present Value ..................................................................................................................... 18
Benefit/Cost Ratio..................................................................................................................... 18

ii
1. INTRODUCTION AND SUMMARY OF KEY RESULTS
There are three types of quantifiable benefits associated with the Moynihan Station Phase 1
project:
o Time savings for rail passengers in and around Penn Station resulting from reduced
queuing and congestion and shorter walk distances
o Incremental railroad ridership resulting from a shift to rail travel from other modes
o Improved life safety conditions within the station

The primary results of the economic analysis are summarized in Exhibits 1 and 2. At a 7% real
discount rate, the 2009 Present Value (PV) of the project’s total benefits is $498 million (in 2009
dollars) for the Base Case scenario. Similarly, the PV of the project costs is $178 million (in 2009
dollars). At a 3% discount rate (Scenario A), the PV of the project benefits and costs would be
$1.05 billion and $204 million, respectively.

Exhibit 1: Summary of Benefits at 7% Real Discount Rate in the Base Case Scenario

Total Discounted
Value of
Benefit Category
Benefits
(2009 $M)
Local Travel Time Savings Benefit $143.3
Intercity Travel Time Savings Benefit $25.5
Vehicle Operating & Ownership Cost Savings Benefits $63.4
Parking Cost Saving Benefits $9.5
Accident Reduction Safety Benefits $239.8
Environmental Benefits $16.9
TOTAL $498.4

To add some quantification to the project’s life-safety benefits, a sensitivity analysis was also
performed to analyze a hypothetical scenario where two accidents have a 10% probability of
occurring in 2020, resulting in 175 casualties. For this scenario (Scenario B), the probability-
weighted present value of the economic benefit of avoiding these impacts is estimated to be $50
million (using a 7% discount rate). 1 If these benefits were included in the benefits analysis, the
present value of the project’s total economic benefits would be $548 million. Using a 3%
discount rate (Scenario C), the present value would be $1.12 billion (in 2009 dollars).

Exhibit 2 summarizes the Benefit-Cost (B/C) analysis results for the Base Case and the three
Sensitivity Scenarios as described above.

                                                            
1
If the scenario assumed the accidents had a 100% chance of occurring in year 2020, the
economic benefit of avoiding these accidents would be approximately $500 million in present
value terms.

1
Exhibit 2: Summary of B/C Ratios and Net Present Values

Characteristics Net Present


Real Life-Safety B/C Value
Scenario
Discount Benefits Test Ratio (2009 $
Rate Case Included millions)
Base Case
7% No 2.8 $320.1
Scenario
Scenario A 3% No 5.1 $843.4
Scenario B 7% Yes 3.1 $370.0
Scenario C 3% Yes 5.5 $919.3

The following sections describe the methodology and key assumptions used in the economic
benefits analysis. This methodology and the key assumptions are consistent with the guidance
USDOT has prescribed for TIGER Grant applications. It is important to note that a formal
economic analysis is not a comprehensive measure of a project’s total benefits, as many benefits
cannot be readily quantified and occur under conditions of uncertainty. The broader set of
benefits is described in the long-term outcomes section of the TIGER Grant application.

2. KEY ANALYTICAL ASSUMPTIONS


Several analytical and procedural assumptions are required to apply economic analysis methods
to the available data and unique conditions regarding the proposed Moynihan Station project.
The following outlines these assumptions and their basis.

Real Discount Rate 
Benefits and costs are typically valued in constant (e.g., 2009) dollars to avoid having to forecast
future inflation and escalate future values for benefits and costs accordingly. Even in cases
where costs are expressed in future, year-of-expenditure values, they tend to be built upon
estimates in constant dollars, and are easily deflated. The use of constant dollar values requires
the use of a real discount rate for present value discounting (as opposed to a nominal discount
rate). The U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB) currently requires U.S. Federal
agencies to use a 7% real discount rate to evaluate public investments and regulations. 2 In
keeping with this standard, the analysis assumes a discount rate of 7%. An alternate scenario
with a discount rate of 3% was also estimated.

Evaluation Period 
Benefits and costs are typically evaluated for a period that includes the construction period and
an operations period ranging from 20-50 years after the initial project investments are
completed. For this analysis, an evaluation period of 2009 through 2054 was assumed (including
40 years of benefits starting substantial project completion in 2015), based on the expected
useful life of the investments.

                                                            
http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/infrastructure/asstmgmt/primer03.cfm#s3
2

2
Travel Time Savings Considerations and Value of Time Assumptions 

General Discussion of Travel Time Savings  
Travel time savings include walk time, wait time, and in-vehicle travel time savings. Travel time
is considered a cost to users, and its value depends on the disutility (cost or dis-benefit) that
travelers attribute to time spent traveling. Higher disutility is associated with walk and wait time
because users tend to find this more onerous than in-vehicle travel time. A reduction in travel
time would translate into more time available for work, leisure, or other activities, which travelers
value.

Value of Time Assumptions 
Travel time savings must be converted from hours to dollars in order for benefits to be
aggregated and compared against costs in the analysis. This is traditionally performed by
assuming that travel time is valued as a percentage of the average wage rate, with different
percentages for different trip purposes. For this analysis, assumptions for value of time (VOT)
estimates were derived from USDOT’s Value of Time guidelines. 3 This involves valuing travel
time for a business purpose higher than a trip for a non-business or personal purpose, and walk
& wait time higher than general (primarily in-vehicle) time.

Based on USDOT guidance for estimating value of travel times, the following values were used to
value the time saved by travelers due to this phase of the Moynihan Station project. 4

• Local travel general travel time: The value of all local travel is based on the USDOT
guidance of $13.40 (in 2000 dollars) per hour corresponding to all purposes for surface
modes.
• Local travel walk time: Research has established that the time spent in waiting and
walking during travel is perceived to be more onerous than that spent inside a moving
vehicle. The Moynihan Station project will lead to significant improvements in walk time
within and around the station. Time savings specific to walk time savings was assumed to be
valued at $21.10 (in 2000 dollars).
• Intercity travel: The value of $19.80 (2000 dollars) for intercity travel time was also
obtained from USDOT Guidance on Value of Time for Economic Analysis. This value
corresponded to all purposes (included business and personal) for all surface modes.

Annualizing Factor Assumptions 
Estimates of travel time were developed on a daily or basis. Accordingly, annualizing factors are
necessary to convert these daily estimates to yearly values. The following annualizing factors
(days per year) are assumed:

Amtrak Intercity: 277


Commuter (NJT, LIRR): 284

                                                            
http://ostpxweb.dot.gov/policy/Data/VOTrevision1_2-11-03.pdf.
3

The specific values of time were obtained from Revised USDOT Guidance: Value of Travel Time in
4

Economic Analysis, 2003 in 2000 dollars and escalated to 2009 dollars based on a factor of 1.26 as
proposed by USDOT in Response to Questions and Requests for Clarification Submitted to DOT regarding
the TIGER Discretionary Grants Program, August 28, 2009.

3
3. ESTIMATED TRANSPORTATION BENEFITS
There are three types of quantifiable benefits associated with the Moynihan Station Phase 1
project:
o Time savings for rail passengers in and around Penn Station resulting from reduced
queuing and congestion and shorter walk distances
o Incremental railroad ridership resulting from a shift to rail travel from other modes
o Improved life safety conditions within the station

Within each category, direct and secondary benefits are estimated. The time savings benefits
result from four different factors: reduced time required to clear platforms following train
arrivals, shorter walking distances for passengers going to or coming from the Eighth Avenue
Subway and locations on the West Side of Manhattan, and reduced congestion within the Penn
Station concourses.

Faster Platform Clearance

The introduction of new vertical access points to Platforms 3 through 6 on the west side of Eighth
Avenue, with the southward extension of the West End Concourse, is a critical element of the
Moynihan Station project and will help enhance the capacity and reliability of train operations and
passenger-handling at the station.

Following the arrival of heavily-loaded commuter trains in the weekday morning peak period,
which can carry upwards of 1,600 passengers in their largest configurations, relatively long
queues of passengers form at the existing stairs and escalators on Platforms 3 through 6, since
all of the existing access points are concentrated on the easterly portions of these platforms. A
single train arrival can produce queues lasting between five and six minutes. Two closely-spaced
train arrivals at the same platform, which occurs with some regularity at Penn Station, can
produce queues that last upwards of 10 minutes.

The West End Concourse will provide eight additional platform stairs to serve Platforms 3 through
6 on the west side of Eighth Avenue, increasing the platform vertical circulation capacity and
providing a better balance of egress points along the platforms. A spreadsheet model of
Platforms 3 through 6 was developed to analyze queuing and platform clearance conditions
during the weekday morning peak hour. Each arriving train at these four platforms is analyzed.
A hypothetical train schedule, train lengths (consists), passenger loads and track assignments
were developed, matching the level of ridership demand projected for the year 2015. This
hypothetical train schedule was developed to aid in the design of the Moynihan Station project
and was based on information obtained from Amtrak, LIRR and NJT. Each train was spotted at
the platform based on its length and current railroad policy with respect to the positioning of
trains along the platform. Generally, the commuter railroads position their trains as close to the
east end of the platforms as possible, since the preponderance of passenger origins and
destinations are to the east of Penn Station, and the bulk of existing platform access points are
on the eastern portions of the platforms. During peak periods, NJT trains generate the majority
of passengers using Platforms 3 through 6. Amtrak trains also use these platforms. Amtrak
trains tend to be shorter and carry fewer passengers than NJT trains; these trains generally are
positioned to be centered around the existing Main concourse stairs and escalators.

The spreadsheet model identifies the location of each platform vertical circulation element, and
its passenger-handling capacity (expressed in passengers per minute). Arriving passengers are
assigned to the available vertical circulation elements based on several factors, including
proximity of the vertical circulation element to the car in which the passenger was located, and
the distribution of desired passenger destinations. The former factor assigns some passengers to
the first available stair or escalator. The second factor reflects the weighting of passenger

4
destinations to the east of the station and assigns a higher percentage of passengers to the stairs
and escalators at the Seventh Avenue end of the station – reflecting actual observed usage
patterns. A third factor distributes a share of passengers from locations that have heavy queues
of arriving passengers to nearby stairs/escalators where queues dissipate more quickly – again
reflecting behavior that passengers exhibit within the existing station.

This analysis calculates an estimated queue time at each vertical circulation element, for each
arriving train over the morning peak hour. Maximum and average queue times are calculated,
and the cumulative time spent queuing for all arriving passengers, expressed in passenger-
minutes, for each train and for the entire morning peak period. Separate models were developed
for the existing station configuration and for the Moynihan Station Phase 1 configuration with two
additional platform stairs from Platforms 3 through 6 to the extended West End Concourse.
These models were analyzed for the same projected 2015 train schedule and train loading
conditions, and the difference in cumulative passenger-minutes spent queuing between the two
cases represents the estimated magnitude of morning peak hour passenger time savings
attributable to the project.

Passenger queuing at the platforms occurs throughout the four-hour morning peak period– but at
somewhat lower levels than during the peak hour because of the tapering of passenger loads on
board the trains. Based on historical observations, the total magnitude of platform queuing for
the four-hour peak period is estimated to be approximately two times the level of queuing
observed during the peak hour. The conservative simplifying assumption is made that significant
platform clearance queues do not exist during the remainder of the day.

The level of weekday peak period time savings associated with reduced platform queuing is
multiplied by 250 to generate an estimate of the annual time savings, which are expressed in
passenger-hours. In the year 2015, the total estimated time savings is estimated to be 85,100
passenger-hours for NJT passengers and 417 passenger-hours for Amtrak passengers.

Annual time savings by year for the 40-year projected life of the project were estimated by
assuming annual growth in ridership from 2015 levels at 0.5% per year, with the per capita
queue-time savings assumed to remain constant over the period (also a conservative simplifying
assumption).

Better Access to West Side Destinations

The walking route to the West Side of Manhattan for NJT and Amtrak passengers via the
extended West End Concourse is estimated to be approximately 400-feet shorter, on average,
than the route via the existing Penn Station concourses, where a majority of passengers have to
walk eastward along the platforms, ascend to the concourse level and street, and then walk back
westward across Eighth Avenue to their destinations. The West End Concourse and new street
exits within the Farley Building at the corners of Eighth Avenue and 33rd and 31st Streets will offer
a more direct path.

Based on the ridership projections for Penn Station developed for the Moynihan Station
Environmental Assessment and to support the project design, developed in consultation with the
railroads, an estimated 18% of NJT passengers will walk to and from locations to the west of
Penn Station in the year 2015 (equal to 1,770 passengers in the morning peak hour). An
estimated 7.1% of Amtrak passengers will walk to and from the West Side (53 passengers in the
year 2015); this figure is lower than the NJT percentage because of the higher proportion of
Amtrak passengers using taxis.

5
Not all passengers with West Side origins and destinations will choose to use the West End
Concourse. The West End Concourse will be used by an estimated 30% of NJT passengers with
West Side destinations, and 33% of Amtrak passengers with West Side destinations. The
remaining passengers going to the West Side will continue ascend from the platforms via the
stairs and escalators within the existing Penn Station concourses.

Since the extended West End Concourse will not be easily usable by either NJT or Amtrak
passengers for boarding trains, because of the anticipated lack of train departure information and
the fact that all NJT platforms will not be accessible from the West End Concourse, this analysis
of benefits only considers time savings for arriving passengers.

Assuming an average walk speed of 3.5 ft/sec, the total walk time savings in the year 2015
morning peak hour would be 6,740 passenger-minutes for NJT passengers and 200 passenger-
minutes for Amtrak passengers. Based on the 2015 ridership projections for Penn Station,
morning peak hour-to-daily expansion factors are assume to be 5.8 for NJT and 17.6 for Amtrak.
Daily-to-annual expansion factors are assumed to be 284 for NJT and 277 for Amtrak. Applying
these factors yields time savings benefits of 39,100 passenger-minutes for NJT and 3,560
passenger-minutes for Amtrak respectively. These translate into annual time savings of 185,000
passenger-hours for NJT and 16,400 passenger-hours for Amtrak.

As with the platform queuing time savings, these benefits are assumed to grow over time
proportionally with the growth in railroad ridership, at a projected rate of 0.5% per annum over a
40-year period.

LIRR passengers, who already have access to the West End Concourse, will not realize a
significant walk time savings as a result of the project. Likewise, passengers with destinations to
the east of Penn Station will not realize a significant walk time savings benefit.

Better Access to Eighth Avenue Subway

A large number of Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) passengers use the West End Concourse as one
of the most direct ways to reach the Eighth Avenue Subway from the LIRR’s platforms in Penn
Station. The West End Concourse extension will offer NJT and Amtrak passengers the same
opportunity for a more direct and less congested walking path to and from the Eighth Avenue
Subway station. The method used to estimate walk time savings for these NJT and Amtrak
passengers is similar to the method described above for walk time savings to and from West Side
destinations.

An estimated 10.8% of arriving NJT passengers (3,560 passengers in the year 2015) are
projected to use the West End Concourse to reach the Eighth Avenue subway during the morning
peak hour. For Amtrak, 3.1% of arriving passengers (70 passengers in the year 2015) will use
the new West End Concourse stairways as a more direct route to the Eighth Avenue Subway. On
average, these passengers will save approximately 200 feet in walk distance, which, at an
average walk speed of 3.5 ft/sec, generates an average time savings of slightly less than two
minutes per trip. Peak hour cumulative time savings for NJT passengers in the year 2015 would
be 6,770 passenger-minutes in the peak hour, 39,300 passenger-minutes per day, and 186,000
passenger-hours annually – using the same expansion factors that were applied to west side walk
trips. For Amtrak passengers, the time savings in the year 2015 would be 133 passenger-
minutes in the morning peak hour, 2,340 passenger-minutes daily, and 10,800 passenger-hours
annually.

6
These benefits would grow over time through the 40-year period in the same proportion as
projected ridership growth and the other time-savings benefits.

Reduced Congestion Within Existing Station

The fourth category of time savings benefit relates to peak congestion and delay for passengers
using the existing Penn Station concourses. The West End Concourse and 33rd Street Connector
will divert some NJT and Amtrak passengers from the existing concourses. These will be mostly
arriving passengers, since the extended West End Concourse is not projected to be used by a
large number of NJT or Amtrak departing passengers. During the weekday peak periods, the
extended West End Concourse will serve to relieve congestion at several bottleneck locations
within the existing station where peak levels of service are projected to be in the Level of Service
(LOS) D range by 2015. These include the 33rd Street Connecting Concourse, 34th Street
entrance, Seventh Ave/32nd Street entrance, east end of Hilton Passageway, and within the LIRR
Main Gate Area and NJT Seventh Ave Concourse. LOS D is a relatively congested condition that
exceeds the normal design standard of LOS C for heavily-used commuter facilities. At LOS D,
most pedestrians walk at a speed less than their normal walking speed.

Though the West End Concourse will divert only a limited number of passengers from the existing
station, primarily those using the Eighth Avenue Subway or with destinations on the west side of
Manhattan, the small incremental reductions in congestion and improvements in walking speeds
within the existing station will accrue to a large number of pedestrians and result in a significant
cumulative time savings benefit for these pedestrians, most of whom are railroad passengers.

A rigorous pedestrian circulation and level of service analysis was undertaken for the full
Moynihan Station project – including improvements within the Farley Building in addition to the
West End Concourse and 33rd Street Connector. This analysis indicated improvements in peak
levels of service from the LOS D range to LOS C at the five bottleneck locations listed above.
Using data from Fruin 5 on average walk speeds at various levels of service, an improvement from
LOS D to LOS C would generate an average walk time savings of 0.28 seconds per linear foot of
distance travelled. Exhibit 3 summarizes the estimated cumulative walk time savings that would
accrue during the peak periods. Since congestion is concentrated in the weekday morning and
evening peak periods, a peak hour-to-daily expansion factor of 4.0 was used, consistent with
historical observations of peaking and peak congestion at Penn Station. Daily savings are
expanded to cumulative annual savings using a factor of 250, based on the simplifying
assumption that weekend and holiday conditions are relatively congestion-free.

Phase 1 of the Moynihan Station project constructs the West End Concourse and two additional
stairways down to Platforms 3 through 6. However, construction of the main Train Hall within
the Farley Building, with direct escalator and elevator connections to Platforms 3 through 8, is
not included in the Phase 1 work scope – so the impact of the project on pedestrian congestion
within the existing station concourses will be more limited in Phase 1 than will be case for the full
project when Phase 2 is completed. A stand-alone pedestrian circulation analysis of just the
Phase 1 project was not available, so, for the purposes of this analysis, the assumption was
made that 10% of the congestion-related walk time savings of the full Moynihan Station project
would accrue to the Phase 1 project. This assumption is considered to be conservative, since the
Phase 1 West End Concourse project would provide two out of four of the new stair/escalator
elements proposed for the west side of Eighth Avenue. (The Phase 2 project also would add a
pair of escalators down to Platforms 7 and 8, which are already served by the existing West End
Concourse.)
                                                            
J. Fruin, Pedestrian Planning and Design, Elevator World, 1986.
5

7
Exhibit 3 summarizes the calculations of peak hour, daily and annual walk-time savings
associated with reduced peak congestion within the existing portions of Penn Station – as a result
of constructing the West End Concourse and 33rd Street Connector.

Exhibit 3: Concourse Congestion Reduction Time Savings


33rd St 34th St 32nd St Hilton 7th Ave TOTAL
Connecting Entrance Entrance Psgwy Concses
Concse East

No. of pedestrians in peak hour (2015) 16,800 9,600 11,600 6,500 15,600 60,100
Distance travelled within bottleneck zone (ft) 500 150 150 50 250
Person-feet traveled in congested locs during peak hour (2015) 8,400,000 1,440,000 1,740,000 325,000 3,900,000 15,805,000
Walk time savings per foot traveled (secs), LOS D to LOS C 0.028 0.028 0.028 0.028 0.028
Time savings in peak hour due to LOS improvement (p-m) 3,920 672 812 152 1,820 7,376
Pro-rated time savings at 10% of above 392 67 81 15 182 738
Peak hour to daily factor 4 4 4 4 4
Daily time savings (person-minutes) 1,568 269 325 61 728 2,950
Daily to annual factor 284 284 284 284 284
Annual time savings (Person-hours) 7,422 1,272 1,537 287 3,446 13,965

Commuter share (95%) 13,266


Intercity share (5%) 698

Daily time savings of approximately 3,000 person-minutes and cumulative annual savings of
14,000 person-hours are estimated for the year 2015. Approximately 95% of these benefits
(13,300 person-hours) are estimated to be realized by commuters, with the remaining 5% (700
person-hours) accruing to Amtrak intercity rail passengers.

As with the platform queuing time savings, these benefits are assumed to grow over time
proportionally with the growth in railroad ridership, at a projected rate of 0.5% per annum over a
40-year period.

Mode Shift

The improved passenger access to Platforms 3 through 6 will result in faster platform clearance
times on these platforms, which will marginally increase the throughput capacity of these
platforms and translate into the ability for the railroads to handle slightly more passengers at the
station during the weekday peak periods. The West End Concourse extension will provide for
more efficient movement of passengers onto and off of Platforms 3 through 6 in the station,
which are used by Amtrak throughout the day and by NJT primarily during the weekday morning
and evening peak periods.

As previously described, the project will reduce platform queuing times during the peak periods,
which can reduce the length of time that trains need to dwell in the station and potentially
shorten the intervals between trains arriving at a platform to discharge passengers (even though
the time needed to discharge passengers from a loaded train to the platform and up to the
concourse level is only one of several factors that influence train dwell times). With the station
operating at or above its practical capacity during the peak periods, the augmentation of the
station’s throughput capacity by even a small amount will result in the ability of the railroads to
carry incrementally more passengers into and out of Manhattan.

8
An analysis was performed of a hypothetical morning peak hour – based on the current railroad
operating plan but with passenger volumes about one-third higher than in 2006, reflecting a
future condition that could occur in the station in the 2012-2017 timeframe, consistent with the
growth plans of the railroads operating at Penn Station. The analysis focused on Platforms 3
through 6 (Tracks 5 through 12) in the station, which will be benefited by the West End
Concourse improvements. In the hypothetical operating scenario, NJT morning peak trains on
these platform tracks tend to operate one after the other in the eastbound direction, dropping
their passengers and proceeding onward to Sunnyside Yard for mid-day storage. These are the
station tracks that would offer the greatest opportunity for potentially adding a peak period train.
For the hypothetical future operating plan, platform queue times for the NJT trains on these
tracks ranged between 3.5 and 6 minutes, for the existing station configuration. When the
proposed West End Concourse improvements are included, queue times become shorter, in the
range of 3 to 5 minutes. The reduction in overall queue times would be on the order of 0.5
minutes per train.

Over the course of a full peak period, the cumulative effect of these reductions in platform
queuing would be to create space for one or more additional trains to operate through the
station – preserving the same amount of cushion or slack time between the clearance of
passengers from a platform and the arrival of a subsequent train at the same platform. The
actual platform capacity freed up would be greater, but the ability to run additional trains into
and out of Penn Station depends on many factors besides the capacity of the platforms
themselves. Therefore, for purposes of this analysis, it is assumed that space for one additional
commuter train within the two-to-three hour peak period is made available by the passenger
circulation benefits of the West End Concourse extension. It is further assumed that latent
demand will exist for this additional capacity, and that peak period commuters from New Jersey
will shift to NJT trains from other modes (including driving to Manhattan, driving to the Hudson
River ferry and taking commuter buses). One additional full-length NJT peak train would carry
approximately 1,600 passengers. Assuming one inbound train in the morning and one outbound
train in the evening, for 250 weekdays per year, the annual NJT ridership increment attributable
to the project would be approximately 800,000 trips. Of these, it is assumed that 80% would be
diverted from the bus mode, 15% from drive-to-ferry, and 5% from drive-to-Manhattan.
Average commute trip lengths are assumed to be in the 35 to 40 mile range. Over the course of
a year, trips diverted from bus to rail would result in a reduction in vehicle miles traveled (VMT)
of approximately 640,000 bus-miles (assuming an average load of 40 passengers per bus).

Passengers also would realize a time savings benefit. Assuming an average time savings of
approximately 11 minutes per trip (equivalent to an increase in average speed from 30 mph to 35
mph), passengers shifting from bus to rail would save 122,000 passenger-hours of travel time
per year. For passengers shifting from the ferry and auto modes, assuming an average time
savings of approximately 10 minutes per trip, the associated time savings would be 26,700
passenger-hours of travel time per year. These ferry and auto passengers also would realize an
out-of-pocket cost savings associated with not having to park either in Manhattan parking
garages or at the Hudson River ferry terminals.

Unlike the estimated walk time savings, which are estimated to grow annually in proportion to
projected ridership growth, the capacity-related ridership benefits represent a discrete one-time
improvement that would remain constant over the estimated lifetime of the improvement
(assumed to be 40 years for the purpose of this analysis).

Amtrak also would realize an incremental capacity benefit during the commuter peak periods,
associated with shorter platform clearance times, modest reductions in average platform dwell
times and reduced pedestrian congestion with the portions of station jointly used by Amtrak and
the commuter railroads. As was assumed for commuter travel, there will be a latent demand for

9
rail passenger service to and from Penn Station that will not be able to be served at Amtrak’s
desired level of service quality, at times when the station is operating at or beyond its practical
capacity. In the year 2015 and subsequently, these capacity-constrained conditions are
projected to occur during each weekday morning and evening rush hour. With the incremental
capacity created by the West End Concourse extension project, which directly serves those
platforms that Amtrak uses during the peak period (Platforms 3 through 6), a small number of
additional intercity travelers to and from New York can be expected to shift to the train from
other modes (predominantly auto and air) because conditions within Penn Station are
incrementally better with the West End Concourse extension in place. This analysis assumes a
shift of 560 daily passengers to intercity rail, with two-thirds being diverted from air travel and
one-third from the automobile mode. These incremental passengers will be carried in both the
inbound and outbound directions during both the morning and evening peak periods. They are
more likely to be served by Amtrak selectively adding cars to existing trains and/or adjusting its
train schedules, rather than by adding new trains to the schedule. The additional equipment
needed to carry these passengers is assumed to be available in the 2015 timeframe. Assuming
an average trip length of 150 miles and an average automobile occupancy of 1.2, the mode shift
from auto to intercity rail would yield a savings of approximately 11.5 million vehicle miles
traveled (VMT) per year in the Northeast Corridor. With the average speed of travel increasing to
75 mph for rail as opposed to 60 mph for intercity auto, the average trip by rail would be 30
minutes shorter, resulting in annual passenger time savings of 46,200 person-hours. Relative
time savings for the rail mode versus air travel are dependent upon the specific origins and
destinations of trips and can vary considerably. A perceived 10-minute savings in journey time
for a trip by rail versus the equivalent trip by air is assumed to represent the average for the 375
daily trips that would shift to rail from air travel. This level of reduced journey time would
generate an annual benefit of 31,300 passenger-hours in travel time savings for these
passengers.

As with the commuter benefits in this category, the mode shift benefits represent a discrete
estimate of additional capacity, which is assumed to remain constant throughout the analysis
lifetime of the project.

Life Safety – Emergency Evacuation

The combination of the West End Concourse extension and the installation of a platform
ventilation system for the portion of the trainshed beneath the Farley Building will make a
significant improvement to life safety conditions within the portions of the train station lying west
of Eighth Avenue – comprising approximately one-third of the station’s total footprint. The West
End Concourse extension will improve the station’s emergency egress capacity and create more
balanced conditions throughout the station than now exist. The platform ventilation system will
provide a system capable of exhausting smoke from a track-level fire and extending the period of
time during which conditions remain tenable for occupancy at the platform level as a fire or other
emergency incident progresses.

The addition of eight new stairs will improve the emergency egress capacity of Platforms 3
through 6 in Penn Station – making them comparable to the other platforms in the station (1, 2
and 7 through 11) in terms of the quantity and distribution of egress capacity along the
platforms. When coupled with the Phase 2 improvements at the Farley Building, all platforms in
the station, for the first time in the 100 years since the station was built, will meet the NFPA
standard that specifies that no point on a platform should be more than 300 feet from a vertical
circulation element. On Platforms 4 through 6, the current distance from the western end of the
platform to the nearest stair or escalator ranges from 600 to over 800 feet.

10
There are insufficient data to quantify definitively the probability of occurrence of a fire or other
emergency incident at Penn Station and the magnitude of the benefit that the proposed project
would generate compared to the existing conditions. In the absence of a rigorous risk
assessment, this analysis has identified two hypothetical scenarios where the improved
configuration of passenger egress points would reduce the size of the population of passengers
vulnerable to an emergency event. One scenario is a track fire or other significant smoke-
generating incident at platform level. The second scenario would be a fire or other emergency
occurring at the level of the West End Concourse or within the Eighth Avenue Subway station,
requiring evacuation to street level of the occupants of the West End Concourse.

For the platform level scenario, emergency egress platform clearance times are calculated for the
existing condition and for the Moynihan Station Phase 1 condition with the West End Concourse
extension constructed. Exhibit 4 compares the time needed to clear selected platforms (3
through 6) of passengers with a full trainload of passengers simultaneously occupying each
platform track and indicates the extent to which platform clearance time would be reduced as a
result of the West End Concourse improvements. Using the maximum clearance rate for stairs
and escalators, according to NFPA 130 criteria, the table calculates the number passengers who
would be exposed or vulnerable to adverse conditions at the platform level with the existing
configuration, but who would be able to safely exit the platforms under the proposed
configuration. The average for the four platforms would be 933 passengers. Assuming a
hypothetical casualty rate of 10% for a serious incident at track level, one occurrence of this
emergency scenario could generate an estimated 93 casualties.

Exhibit 4: Platform Emergency Event Scenario


Platform Platform Platform Platform Average
3 4 5 6 Pl 3-6
Full Trainload platform clearance
Existing clearance rate (per NFPA130) 391 362 412 438
Existing clearance time (mins) 6.6 9.0 7.9 7.4
W/ WEC clearance time (mins) 4.7 5.9 5.6 5.3
Differential (mins of incremental exposure) 1.9 3.1 2.3 2.1
Incremental passengers exposed 743 1122 948 920 933

No of events in lifetime of improvement (hypothetical) 1

Casualty rate for vulnerable population (hypothetical) 10%

Casualties (for one incident during project lifetime) 93

Farley would also reduce the time needed to get passengers from any point within the station
complex to a point of safe refuge at street level, thanks to more vertical circulation elements, and
two additional station entry / exit points. Having nine street exits instead of the existing seven
will increase the overall throughput capacity of the station’s street-level entrances from 2,200
persons/minute to 2,600 persons/minute. Exhibit 5 presents an estimate of the incremental
egress capacity benefits of the Moynihan Phase 1 project relative to existing conditions. The
project will eliminate an existing cul-de-sac condition and increase street egress capacity by a
greater amount than ridership is estimated to increase.

11
Exhibit 5: West End Concourse Evacuation Scenario

West End Concourse Evacuation


(2015 conditions)
Existing WEC Egress capacity to street 204 peds/min
Planned WEC Egress capacity to street 510 peds/min

Peak PM occupancy -- existing 1568 passengers


Peak PM occupancy -- planned 1870 passengers

Exit queuing time -- existing 7.69 minutes


Exit queuing time -- planned 3.67 minutes

Average walk time to street 2 minutes

Clearance time -- existing 9.69 minutes


Clearance time -- planned 5.67 minutes
Differential 4.02 minutes

Vulnerable population 820 passengers


No. of events in project lifetime (hypothetical) 1
Casualty rate (hyothetical) 10%
Casualties (hypothetical) 82 passengers

4. BENEFITS INCLUDED IN THE EVALUATION


As part of the analysis of the analysis a Base Case and three sensitivity scenarios were estimated.

Base Case: Present value of benefits estimated at 7% real discount rate.


Sensitivity Case A: Present value of the base case benefits estimated at 3% real discount rate.
Sensitivity Case B: Present value of benefits estimated at 7% real discount rate, including a
10% probability of life-safety casualties occurring in Penn Station in 2020.
Sensitivity Case C: Present value of benefits estimated at 3% real discount rate, including a
10% probability of life-safety casualties occurring in Penn Station in 2020.

The results in this section are presented for the Base Case. The Sensitivity Case results are
presented in Section 4.

Travel Time Savings 
There are multiple components of travel-time savings that will be gained as a result of the
Moynihan Station project. In general, there are three main categories of beneficiaries in terms of
travel time:

1. Existing rail users


2. New rail users (i.e. trips diverted from other modes such as us, auto and air)
3. Remaining highway users and air travelers after the project completion, as a result of
reduced delay on the roads due to a net decrease in highway users as a result of the
project.

12
Due to lack of access to adequate data, the benefits of (3) above were not estimated, resulting in
a travel time savings estimate that is conservative. The type of benefits accrued by the first two
categories of users are:

Existing Rail Users


(i) Walk/ Wait Travel Time Savings: This includes travel-time savings for rail passengers
in and around Penn Station resulting from reduced queuing and congestion and
shorter walk distances. These will be accrued by both local as well as intercity rail
passengers.

New Rail Users


(i) Travel time savings due to mode shift: Incremental railroad ridership will result from
people shifting from other modes – buses (in case of local passenger), autos (in case
of both local and intercity passengers) and air (in case of intercity passengers) – to
rail.

Using the above assumptions, time savings benefits were estimated to have a present value of
$169 million over the evaluation period.

Reductions in Vehicle Operating Costs and Auto Ownership Costs 
The Moynihan Station project would not only affect travel times, but would also reduce vehicle
operating and ownership costs for non-transit users. Because some drivers will instead choose to
use rail, there will be fewer automobiles on the road, and thus, fewer vehicle miles traveled
(VMT). Lower VMT results in quantifiable vehicle operating cost savings. It may also encourage
some rail transit users to own fewer vehicles.

In terms of operating costs, shifting from driving to transit reduces overall VMT, which provides
savings in the marginal costs of auto travel (fuel, maintenance and tires). Based on a fuel price
of $2.94 per gallon, which represented U.S. fuel prices as of late 2007, the American Automobile
Association estimates the variable, out-of-pocket cost for fuel, maintenance and tires at $0.18 per
mile in 2009 dollars. 6,7 The Moynihan Station analysis values auto (variable) operating cost
savings at $0.18 per mile.

A reduction in auto VMT due to the Moynihan Station project will also results in less vehicle
depreciation (higher vehicle resale value) and reduced vehicle ownership costs for households
that shift to transit. Some households will save money associated with vehicle usage, and a
small share will save even more by altering their auto purchase decisions (i.e., reducing the
number of vehicles owned). Households that have good transit accessibility and own multiple
vehicles are strong candidates to reduce their auto ownership level.

The Moynihan Station project analysis assumes that 90% of the total reduction in VMT is
attributable to reductions in vehicle usage, saving some variable costs associated with vehicle
ownership (e.g., depreciation and finance charges). The remaining 10% of the reduction in VMT
is attributable to reductions in auto ownership, which is worth more because it also eliminates
fixed costs associated with auto ownership (e.g., insurance, licensing, and registration). The
reductions in vehicle usage are valued at a rate of $0.17 per vehicle mile (in 2009 dollars) and
the reduction in VMT attributable to reductions in auto ownership were valued at $0.27 per
                                                            
"Your Driving Costs" (2008); this value is consistent with others reviewed in current literature.
6
7
USDOT Benefit-Cost guidelines stipulate an average retail price per gallon of $3.33 in 2007 dollars.
However, if this figure is inflated to 2009 dollars and all relevant taxes and deductions are applied, the
resulting average retail price would be fairly close to the assumption of $2.94 per gallon.

13
vehicle mile (in 2009 dollars). These assumptions are based upon a review of the state of the
practice, 8 to estimate the benefits of reduced vehicle ownership. 9

Vehicle operating and ownership cost benefits accruing from the Moynihan Station project are
estimated to have a present value of $63 million over the evaluation period.

Parking Cost Savings 
Reductions in the number of auto trips caused by the Moynihan Station may also reduce
expenditures on parking, depending on trip destinations. With additional transit use, short-term
parking benefits could manifest in terms of reduced demand for parking spaces, and hence,
potentially lower parking costs. In the long run, reduced land requirements for parking facilities
may free up land for other uses.

An estimate of parking cost savings based on number of one-way auto trips eliminated was found
to be a $1,000,000 annually in 2009 dollars. This assumes that 75% of the eliminated auto trips
use the parking at the ferry station and 25% use parking in Manhattan. This results in a present
value parking cost savings of nearly $10 million over the evaluation period.

Accident Cost Savings  
Reductions in VMT lower the incidence of traffic accidents. The cost savings from reducing the
number of accidents include direct savings (e.g., reduced personal medical expenses, lost wages,
and lower individual insurance premiums) as well as significant avoided costs to society (e.g.,
second party medical and litigation fees, emergency response costs, incident congestion costs,
and litigation costs). The value of all such benefits – both direct and societal – could also be
approximated by the cost of service disruptions to other travelers, emergency response costs to
the region, medical costs, litigation costs, vehicle damages, and economic productivity loss due to
workers inactivity.

The state-of-the-practice in benefit-cost analyses is to estimate highway accident cost savings for
each of three accident types (fatal accidents, injury accidents, or property damage only
accidents) using the change in highway VMT. 10 Some studies perform more disaggregate
estimates of the accident cost savings, applying different accident rates to different types of
roadways (e.g., interstate, highway, arterial).

The Moynihan Station analysis estimates the benefits associated with accident cost savings using
the VMT savings. For local travel 80% of all VMT was assumed to be on highways while for
interstate travel 95% of all travel was assumed to be on highways.

The change in VMT for each of these roadway facility types is then used to calculate the change
in the number of fatal accidents, injury accidents, and property damage only accidents (yielding a
total of six accident savings figures) using the accident rates shown in Exhibit 3.

                                                            
8
ECONorthwest and Parsons Brinckerhoff (2002); Minnesota Department of Transportation (2003); Wilbur
Smith Associates and Urban Systems (2005); AAA (2006); AASHTO 2003; and Litman (2006).
9
The recommended values were calculated assuming that vehicles drive 15,000 miles per year on average.
10
Parsons Brinckerhoff (2004); National Safety Council (2004); and Booz-Allen Hamilton in association with
Hagler Bailly and Parsons Brinckerhoff (1999)

14
Exhibit 6: Accident Rates and Savings
MAIS Severity Fraction Economic Accident Rates Corresponding Cal-
Level of VSL Value of (Per Million B/C Accident Rate
Accident VMT) Category
(2009 $)
Non-Freeway
MAIS 1 Minor 0.0020 $12,000 1.490 (Property Damage)
MAIS 2 Moderate 0.0155 $93,000 1.560 Property Damage Only
MAIS 3 Serious 0.0575 $345,000 0.267 Injury
MAIS 4 Severe 0.1875 $1,125,000 0.267 Injury
MAIS 5 Critical 0.7625 $4,575,000 0.267 Injury
MAIS 6 Fatal 1.0000 $6,000,000 0.013 Fatal

The benefits resulting from highway accident reduction are converted to monetary values using
the cost of fatal, injury, and non-injury highway accidents cited by the USDOT. In 2009 dollars,
fatal accidents are valued at $6,000,000 also known as the value of statistical life (VSL). 11
Accordingly, the Maximum Abbreviated Injury Scale (MAIS) prescribes values of other injuries
relative to the VSL as shown in Exhibit 6.

The per-VMT rates of all freeway accidents were obtained from National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration (NHTSA) as shown in Exhibit 6. 12 Since the USDOT classifies injuries in three
categories - Serious, Severe and Critical, and the NHTSA only publishes rates for injury accidents
as a whole, the rates for all the three injury categories were assumed to be equal. All non-
freeway accidents were valued at the rate of Minor accidents. The rate of non-freeway, minor
accidents was obtained from the Caltrans Cal-B/C model.

The present value of highway accident savings benefits accruing from the Moynihan Station
project over the evaluation period are estimated at $240 million.

Environmental Benefits 
One important benefit of reduction in VMT is a reduction in air emissions. With fewer vehicles on
the road and the need for marginally less air travel, there will be a reduction in such pollutants as
Carbon Dioxide (the primary greenhouse gas), Sulfur Dioxide, Carbon Monoxide, Particulate
Matter, Nitrogen Oxides, and Volatile Organic Compounds.

                                                            
Treatment of the Economic Value of a Statistical Life in Departmental Analysis, U.S. DOT, March 18, 2009.
11

NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis, 2009, “2008 Traffic Safety Annual Assessment-
12

Highlights”

15
Exhibit 7: Emission Rates and Values

Pollutant Auto Emissions Airplane Dollar Value/Ton


(grams/ mile) Emissions ($2009)
(grams/
passenger mile)
VOC 0.754 N/A $1,700
NO 0.825 3.024 $4,000
PM 0.035 0.008 $168,000
SO2 0.004 0.097 $16,000
CO2 433.498 314.785 $33*

The value of CO2 damage costs was escalated at 2.4% per year.

Average vehicle emissions, for both autos for each of the above-named pollutants, in terms of
grams per mile traveled, were obtained from the Caltrans Cal-B/C model, as well as the EPA’s
MOBILE6 Vehicle Emissions Modeling Software. 13 Similar data for airplane emissions was
obtained from the Transportation and Energy Databook (2009) and the Emissions Inventory
Guidebook (2006). Exhibit 7 summarizes the emission rates and values used in the analysis.

The total weight of avoided emissions was computed using the differential (saved) VMT. The
health cost of emissions per ton was obtained from National Center for Statistics and Analysis. 14
These were then applied to the emissions rate and an annual health cost of avoided emissions
was estimated. Using the above assumptions, the present value of the monetary benefits
accrued due to saved emissions, are estimated at $16.9 million over the life time of the project
(the PV of CO2 savings was $5.8 million of this amount, using the 7% discount rate).

5. SENSITIVITY SCENARIOS
As introduced in Section 3 above, three sensitivity scenarios were estimated based on a
combination of alternate real discount rate and a hypothetical major accident scenario that could
be avoided as a result of the extension.

Discount Rate Sensitivity: As per USDOT guidance, the base case was estimated with a 7%
real discount rate and an alternate case of benefits was estimated using 3% real discount rate.

Major Accident Sensitivity: The combination of the West End Concourse extension and the
installation of a platform ventilation system for the portion of the train-shed beneath the Farley
Building will make a significant improvement to life safety conditions within the portions of the
train station lying west of Eighth Avenue – comprising approximately one-third of the station’s
total footprint. As detailed in Section 3 above, two hypothetical scenarios were estimated, where
the improved configuration of passenger egress points would reduce the size of the population of
passengers vulnerable to an emergency event. One scenario is a track fire or other significant
smoke-generating incident at platform level. The second scenario would be a fire or other
emergency occurring at the level of the West End Concourse or within the Eighth Avenue Subway
station, requiring evacuation to street level of the occupants of the West End Concourse.

                                                            
13
http://epa.gov/otaq/m6.htm
14
Final Regulatory Impact Analysis: Corporate Average Fuel Economy for MY 2011 Passenger Cars and Light
Trucks, Office of Regulatory Analysis and Evaluation, National Center for Statistics and Analysis, March
2009.

16
In order to monetize the impact of these two accident scenarios, it was assumed that there was
a 10% probability of the incidents occurring once during the lifetime of the project. Since
discounting the value of the monetary impact of such accidents would involve making
assumptions about the time of occurrence, it is assumed that in the scenario that if the accidents
occur, their effect would be realized in the year 2020.

Based on the above two definitions, the following sensitivity cases were defined:

Sensitivity Case A: Present value of benefits estimated at 3% real discount rate.

Sensitivity Case B: Present value of benefits estimated at 7% real discount rate, including the
potential of two major accidents during the lifetime of the project.

Sensitivity Case C: Present value of benefits estimated at 3% real discount rate, including the
potential of two major accidents during the lifetime of the project.

The benefits corresponding to each of these sensitivity tests are provided in Exhibit 8.

Exhibit 8: Benefits Monetization Base Case and Sensitivity Scenarios

Total Discounted Value of Benefits (2009 $M)


Benefit Category Base Case Sensitivity Sensitivity Sensitivity
Case A Case B Case C
Local Travel Time Savings Benefit $143.3 $300.6 $143.3 $300.6
Intercity Travel Time Savings Benefit $25.5 $53.5 $25.5 $53.5
Vehicle Operating & Ownership Cost
$63.4 $133.0 $63.4 $133.0
Savings Benefits
Parking Cost Saving Benefits $9.5 $19.9 $9.5 $19.9
Accident Reduction Safety Benefits $239.8 $503.0 $239.8 $503.0
Major Accident Sensitivity N/A N/A $50.0 $75.8
Environmental Benefits $16.9 $37.8 $16.9 $37.8
TOTAL $498.4 $1,047.9 $548.3 $1,123.7

6. ECONOMIC COSTS AND ASSUMPTIONS INCLUDED IN THE


EVALUATION
In a B/C analysis, the term 'cost' refers to the additional resource costs or expenditures required
to implement, perpetuate, and maintain the investments associated with the Moynihan Station
project.

The B/C analysis uses project costs that have been estimated for the Moynihan Station on an
annual basis, expressed in 2009 dollars (the construction costs were provided on a quarterly
basis, but aggregated to provide annual numbers). These cost estimates, which are described
below, are provided by the Port Authority of New York New Jersey (PANYNJ). 15

                                                            
The proposed analysis does not depreciate costs, since it represents a sinking fund for future replacement
15

of an asset. If the analysis were to depreciate costs, a similar process would also have to be done on the
benefit side, thereby balancing each other out.

17
Initial project investment costs include engineering and design, demolition, construction, other
capital investments, and contingency factors. For this analysis, costs were assumed to begin in
the last quarter of 2009 and extend through 2016. The unescalated costs in 2009 dollars are
$230.9 million. 16 At a discount rate of 7% the PV of the capital costs is $178 million while at a
discount rate of 3% the PV is $204 million.

7. APPENDIX - KEY BENEFIT-COST EVALUATION MEASURES


There are several common benefit-cost evaluation measures, each tailored to compare benefits
and costs from different perspectives. The two that are discussed here were used in the
Moynihan Station analysis.

Net Present Value 
The benefit-cost analysis converts potential gains and losses from the proposed investment into
monetary units and compares them on the basis of economic efficiency, i.e., net present value
(NPV). For example, NPV = PVB (present value of benefits) - PVC (present value of costs);
where:

T T
PVB = Σ Bt / (1+ r)t; and PVC = Σ Ct / (1 + r)t
t=0 t=0

and the NPV of a project can be represented as:

T
NPV = ∑ (Bt - Ct)/ (1+r) t,
t=0

where Bt and Ct are the benefits and costs, respectively, of a project in year t; r is the real
discount rate; and T is the time horizon (evaluation period). In essence, NPV gives the
magnitude of the project’s economic feasibility in terms of net benefits (benefits minus costs)
discounted to present values using the real discount rate assumption. Under this criterion, a
scenario with an NPV greater than zero may be considered “economically feasible”. The NPV
provides some perspective on the overall dollar magnitude of benefits not reflected by the other
two measures.

Benefit/Cost Ratio 
The evaluation also estimates the benefit-cost ratio; where the present value of incremental
benefits divided by the present value of incremental costs yields the benefit-cost ratio (B/C
Ratio), i.e., B/C Ratio = PVB / PVC. In essence, the B/C Ratio expresses the relation of
discounted benefits to discounted costs as a measure of the extent by which a project’s benefits
either exceed or fall short of their associated costs. For example, a B/C ratio of 1.5 indicates that
the project generates $1.5 of benefits per $1 of cost. As such, a ratio greater than 1 is necessary
for the project to be economically worthwhile (feasible). The B/C Ratio can be useful when the
objective is to prioritize or rank projects or portfolios of projects with the intent to decide how to
best allocate an established capital budget, assuming equivalent classification of benefits and
costs.

                                                            
16
Reflects a 4.0% cost escalation assumption included in the project cost estimate.

18
APPENDIX E 
PROFILE OF THE 26-COUNTY NEW YORK-NEW JERSEY METROPOLITAN REGION

Dutchess

Putnam
Orange

Westchester
Sussex Rockland
Passaic

Bergen

Warren Morris Bronx Suffolk


Essex NY
Hudson Nassau
Queens
Union Kings

Hunterdon Richmond
Somerset

Middlesex

Mercer
Monmouth

Ocean

BOX 2: THE NEW YORK-NEW JERSEY 26-COUNTY


METROPOLITAN REGION AT A GLANCE IN 2008

Area 8,380 Square Miles


Population 20.1 Million
Non-farm Jobs 9.1 Million
Retail Sales $283.1 Billion
Wages and Salaries $620.7 Billion

(All monetary figures are in 2008 dollars)


APPENDIX F 
Port Authority Minority Participation Summary
2002 - 2007

2007 2006 2005 2004 2003 2002

Port Authority

Prime Construction $364,386,006 $371,731,863 $540,234,361 $334,641,988 $487,943,156 $814,098,327


Goods and Services $543,992,777 $721,311,809 $841,175,048 $253,591,833 471,787,262 366,063,579
Architectural & Engrg. $181,246,000 $143,431,350 $144,217,990 $136,130,150 198,797,000 166,978,000

Port Authority Total $1,089,624,783 $1,236,475,022 $1,525,627,399 $724,363,971 $1,158,527,418 $1,347,139,906

M/WBE

Prime Construction $31,217,138 $24,262,840 $44,086,074 $31,331,919 $32,413,020 $80,250,361

Goods and Services $22,510,667 $12,731,720 $4,044,410 $20,937,399 14,901,182 28,965,681

Architectural & Engrg. $32,778,000 $28,360,270 $28,477,940 $30,609,790 25,229,850 27,619,600

SBE

Prime Construction $5,236,000 $3,500,000 $1,345,900 $1,344,000 1,167,320 20,661,474

Goods and Services $9,477,543 $4,767,754 $3,198,921 $8,999,286 6,776,451 33,260,245

Architectural & Engrg. $1,798,000 $1,338,330 $744,080 $63,010 3,651,920 624,900

Subcontracting $61,883,634 $58,850,574 $64,663,711 $67,191,885 108,164,982 122,178,566

Yr.-End PA Minority Total $164,900,982 $133,811,488 $146,561,036 $160,477,289 $192,304,725 $313,560,827


APPENDIX G 
www.ny.gov - GOVERNOR PATERSON, SENATOR SCHUMER AND ... GENERAL AGREEMENT ON THE FUTURE OF MOYNIHAN STATION

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:


September 13, 2009

GOVERNOR PATERSON, SENATOR SCHUMER AND AMTRAK PRESIDENT JOE


BOARDMAN ANNOUNCE GENERAL AGREEMENT ON THE FUTURE OF MOYNIHAN
STATION

Path Cleared for Final Planning and Design of Long-Awaited New Train Station

Governor David A. Paterson, Senator Charles Schumer and Amtrak President Joe Boardman today
announced that months of intensive negotiations have resulted in a general agreement and mutual
understanding on the basic terms and conditions that will lead to the redevelopment of New York City’s
historic Farley Post Office Building into a new intercity passenger train station and center for most of
Amtrak’s New York City service. This agreement, the terms of which will be finalized as soon as
possible and memorialized in a Memorandum of Understanding, will allow for final planning, design
and financing efforts to proceed on the long hoped for dream of Moynihan Station.

“I am extremely pleased to announce that an understanding has been reached between New York State
and Amtrak on the future of Moynihan Station. New York City is the lynchpin of Amtrak’s service
network in the Northeastern United States, and I welcome this long-term partnership with Amtrak to
preserve and enhance the role of rail in New York State and across the region. This project has been a
top priority of my Administration, and today is an important step toward delivering on its promise.”

Senator Charles E. Schumer said: “This is a critical step forward in the effort to get the Moynihan
Station back on track and keep it that way until it’s done. Amtrak has truly stepped up the plate here to
make a commitment to Senator Moynihan’s vision to transform the Farley Post office in to a world class
gateway to New York City.”

Amtrak CEO and President Joe Boardman said: “This mutual understanding developed between the
parties will the help lead to the development of a world-class passenger station for Amtrak service in
New York City and commits all of us to the long-range task of expanding rail and terminal capacity so
that Amtrak and the regional commuter operators can collectively meet the growing needs for passenger
train service in New York and throughout the Northeast. The building of Moynihan Station will provide
the grand entrance that this great city deserves.”

More than fifteen years ago, the late Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan envisioned transforming the
historic McKim, Mead & White designed Farley Post Office Building into a new intercity passenger rail
station that would be a grand gateway to New York City and replace the original Penn Station, which
was razed in 1963.

The project announced today will provide for the relocation of Amtrak services to a new train hall to be
constructed in the Farley Building, and also creates a partnership between New York State and Amtrak
to plan for the long-term future of the station complex and the New York City intercity and regional rail
network.

file:///X|/Economics/Federal%20Stimulus/TIGER...%20THE%20FUTURE%20OF%20MOYNIHAN%20STATION.htm (1 of 2) [9/15/2009 3:12:47 PM]


www.ny.gov - GOVERNOR PATERSON, SENATOR SCHUMER AND ... GENERAL AGREEMENT ON THE FUTURE OF MOYNIHAN STATION

Pennsylvania Station is the busiest rail station in North America, with roughly 25% of all Amtrak
passengers passing through Penn Station at some point on their journey. Rail ridership is projected to
rise considerably in the coming years and station, terminal and track capacity must be expanded to meet
these needs.

The terms of the agreement will be finalized in the coming weeks and memorialized in a Memorandum
of Understanding.

file:///X|/Economics/Federal%20Stimulus/TIGER...%20THE%20FUTURE%20OF%20MOYNIHAN%20STATION.htm (2 of 2) [9/15/2009 3:12:47 PM]

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