Tunnel boring has started on the Hudson Tunnel Project. The project, which is on target to be completed by 2035, will provide long-term resiliency and reliability for the regional and national rail network for New Jersey Transit and Amtrak riders.

The Hudson Tunnel project consists of three components:

• Construction of a two-track Hudson River rail tunnel between Bergen Palisades in New Jersey and New York Penn Station in Manhattan, N.Y.

• The building of the third and final segment that will enable the new Hudson River Tunnel to connect into New York Penn Station.  

• Rehabilitation of the existing North River Tunnel, which sustained significant damage during Superstorm Sandy in 2012.

The Gateway Development Commission, which was created in 2019 by the states of New York and New Jersey as a special purpose entity to build the projects of the Gateway Program that includes the HTP, says the first tunnel boring machine that will be used to build the new train tunnel under the Hudson River has begun digging, with a second machine set to launch soon.

New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill says she was "proud to be called the ‘tunnel-obsessed Congresswoman,’ and as Governor, I will keep fighting until this tunnel is built, so 100,000 jobs will be delivered and millions of New Jersey commuters and travelers finally have the reliable service they deserve.” 

The two tunnel boring machines will bore approximately one mile through the hard rock under the Palisades Cliffs in New Jersey to the Hudson County Access Shaft on the border of Weehawken and Hoboken. According to the GDC, the two machines will be removed via the access shaft and replaced with a second pair of machines that will build the section of the tunnel under the Hudson River.

The two hard-rock tunnel boring machines are expected to build roughly 30 feet of tunnel per day, including scheduled pauses for maintenance. They will reach the Hudson County Access Shaft approximately one year after launching.

The first phase of tunnel boring is being completed by Schiavone Lane Dragados JV as part of the contract for the Palisades Tunnel Project construction package. The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey is managing delivery of this construction package in partnership with GDC.

“Today we mark the start of boring the first new rail tunnel under the Hudson River since the North River Tunnel went into service in 1910," said GDC CEO Tom Prendergast. While we celebrate a start today, this moment also marks the culmination of years of work. We would not be here today without the hundreds of people who have poured countless hours into planning, designing and building this project. In the days, months and years ahead, we will continue to build on their hard work to deliver this critical project for the riders who are counting on us today, and the future riders who will use the tunnel for decades to come.”