Blizzard-driven service disruptions on the three railroads that serve Penn Station turned the nation’s busiest rail hub into a spot higher fitted to transit tumbleweeds.
With the Lengthy Island Rail Highway, New Jersey Transit and Amtrak’s New York-Boston hall all shut down by town’s largest snowstorm in a decade, the sprawling advanced that strikes 600,000 riders day by day skilled a uncommon Monday morning with out swarms of commuters.
“It’s just a weird feeling,” stated Daniel Ausserladschieder, supervisor of Le Café Espresso within the lower-level LIRR concourse. “It’s so strange to see Penn Station being so calm, with the tracks closed and the signs saying no passengers.”
Le Café Espresso supervisor Daniel Ausserladschieder was working at one of many few companies open throughout a blizzard, Feb. 23, 2026. Credit score: Jose Martinez/THE CITY
The MTA commuter railroad for Lengthy Island and components of Queens and Brooklyn suspended service at 1 a.m. Monday, upfront of the blizzard that hit town with upward of 18 inches of snow. Officers stated service doubtless won’t resume till winds die down later within the day or presumably into Tuesday.
“Everybody knows on Long Island, especially out east, that this is no day to be moving around,” he stated. “They’re really taking a heavy hit.”
The city of Babylon in Suffolk County reported near 30 inches of snow by late Monday morning.
However after an emergency Sunday night time shift at his IT job in Manhattan compelled him to remain in a single day within the metropolis, Calvert Davidson optimistically stationed himself close to a LIRR concourse that was blocked off by barricades.
“I want to go home, I want to sleep, I’m stuck, no service,” stated Davidson, who lives in Bellmore, Nassau County. “But honestly, it’s not their fault — it’s a blizzard.”
Calvert Davidson waits for LIRR service to renew so he can get again to his house on Lengthy Island, Feb. 23, 2026. Credit score: Jose Martinez/THE CITY
New Jersey Transit shut down all rail service by 9 p.m. Sunday, whereas Amtrak suspended all service between Moynihan Practice Corridor and Boston South Station, although soundbound service saved rolling.
Amtrak passengers who might journey by means of Penn Station had been among the many few vacationers on the transfer Monday.
“I’m heading for work down south and I’m pretty shocked that I can even get there,” stated Nick Miller, who was touring to Baltimore Penn Station. “It’s honestly kind of idyllic, to be honest — I get overwhelmed usually coming here and it’s kinda nice and different, peaceful.”
With metropolis officers urging New Yorkers to remain house throughout the blizzard, many Penn Station retail areas had been closed or short-staffed.
At Le Café, which is between the Seventh and Eighth Avenue subway traces, that meant two fewer workers to deal with the trickle of consumers on Monday.
“We would be much more busy,” Ausserladschieder stated. “Obviously, not too many traveling.”
However the power of the blizzard did flip Penn Station’s corridors right into a secure haven for the unhoused, with many resting towards station beams or closed storefronts whilst town arrange a number of warming areas and warming buses within the blocks close to the transit hub.
“I live outside, but I can’t do much outside because the storm has been going terrible,” stated Justine Charlot, a 57-year-old homeless lady. “Between here and the subway, I won’t be going far.”
Individuals head into Penn Station throughout a blizzard, Feb. 23, 2026. Credit score: Jose Martinez/THE CITY
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