Amtrak has begun major construction on a new maintenance facility at Sunnyside Yard in Long Island City, N.Y. The agency says the upgrade will help it prepare for the introduction of new Airo trainsets while also improving the maintenance operations that support millions of trips across the Northeast each year. 

“From this new maintenance facility to the East River Tunnel Rehabilitation Project and so many other projects, Amtrak is delivering transformative investments that are reshaping the future of passenger rail in New York,” said Amtrak Capital Delivery Executive Vice President Laura Mason. “Together with our partners at the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), we’re building the modern infrastructure needed to support our new Airo trains and deliver safer, more reliable service for decades to come.” 

As the project opens in phases through 2030, the new maintenance facility will be used for daily inspections, service, cleaning and more, according to Amtrak. The agency says the investment in these upgrades will improve operational efficiency and working conditions while significantly speeding up train maintenance and reducing turnaround times. Work includes: 

• Construction of a new two-track maintenance and inspection facility for major work.

• Construction of six new services and cleaning tracks.

• Consolidation of commissary, employee workspace, material storage and parking into a single location within the yard, including an efficient modular office compound.

• Bringing 11 existing service platforms to a state of good repair—an update required to clean and prepare trains for passenger service and store trainsets when not in operation.

• Other infrastructure upgrades to accommodate this work, including reconfiguration of two major interlockings and tracks connecting the yard to the Northeast Corridor.

The facility is being designed to support Amtrak’s new Airo trainsets, which will replace passenger cars that have been in service for more than 50 years. The new trains will offer improved accessibility, greater comfort, enhanced reliability and a more modern travel experience, according to Amtrak.

The Siemens-built rolling stock underwent testing in the northeast region before deeper testing at the Transportation Technology Center in Pueblo, Colo., prior to its expected launch on the Cascades Line later this year.

“This new maintenance facility represents FRA’s back to basics approach that prioritizes critical infrastructure projects… to ensure Amtrak’s long-term success,” said FRA Administrator David Fink.

Amtrak says this investment will benefit millions of Amtrak customers across several East Coast routes slated to receive new Airo trainsets over the coming years, including: 

• Northeast Regional service, including Amtrak Virginia and New Haven-Springfield-Greenfield trains.

• State-supported service, including Empire Service, Keystone Service, Maple Leaf, Vermonter, Ethan Allen Express, Adirondack and Carolinian. 

• Long-distance service, including Palmetto.

The new facility and improved service platforms will also be used to maintain or store NextGen Acela, long distance and commuter trains that operate out of this yard. 

The new maintenance facility, crew base and platform improvements represent a combined investment of over $1 billion, primarily funded by Congress through FRA-administered grants. The FRA also recently announced $2.05 billion that will fund up to 43 additional trainsets beyond the 83 Airo trains currently on order. 

Amtrak’s fleet modernization program includes more than 20 maintenance facility and rail yard upgrades across the network to prepare for the introduction of new Airo trainsets:

• The Sunnyside Yard project is Amtrak’s fifth major maintenance facility to advance into major construction over the past two years, following Philadelphia, Seattle and Boston. 

• Rensselaer Yard, currently in design, is the sixth and final major maintenance facility planned for modernization under the program. 

Several layover sites will also be built or renovated by Amtrak and its partners as part of this program. These smaller sites are located along existing routes where trains are cleaned, serviced or stored, such as Albany and Niagara Falls, N.Y., Springfield, Mass. and Burlington, Vt.