{"id":2106,"date":"2026-06-15T11:07:33","date_gmt":"2026-06-15T11:07:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=2106"},"modified":"2026-06-15T11:07:33","modified_gmt":"2026-06-15T11:07:33","slug":"real-leadership-can-save-penn-station-from-its-homeless-plague-mr-president","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=2106","title":{"rendered":"Real leadership can save Penn Station from its homeless plague, Mr. President"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

Penn Station doesn\u2019t have to be a homeless-plagued disaster zone \u2014 just look at Grand Central Terminal.<\/p>\n

Read more Israel refuses to leave Lebanon, vows to hit Iran \u2018with all our might\u2019 if Tehran attacks<\/a><\/p>\n

Even before one vagrant\u2019s stabbing rampage a week ago, local leaders shrugged off the issue, but New Yorkers (and New Jerseyans) have every right to ask why the city\u2019s primary train station has to be a living room for mentally ill and homeless people.<\/p>\n

A few years ago, the lower-level food court at Grand Central was a mess, with vagrants camping out at tables and washing their socks in the restroom.<\/p>\n

Some restaurant owners threatened to withhold rent if management didn\u2019t clean up the venue.<\/p>\n

The MTA, which owns GCT, got the message and reorganized the food court; the area is now orderly and respectable (albeit with nowhere to sit). <\/p>\n

New York\u2019s laws prevent outright ejection of vagrants from public property, but that\u2019s no excuse.<\/p>\n

One key for Grand Central: closing for a few hours every night, a change that allowed management to make everyone leave. <\/p>\n

Another: A single authority over the whole property, since the MTA owns the station and runs nearly all the train lines it serves, meaning clear accountability for policing and<\/em> homeless outreach.<\/p>\n

Read more Historic Knicks NBA championship has New Yorkers dancing in the streets: \u2018Unifying the world\u2019<\/a><\/p>\n

Penn\u2019s managerial structure is almost as complex as its labyrinthine physical layout, which enables people to skulk in remote corridors. <\/p>\n

Amtrak owns the station, but the LIRR and New Jersey Transit oversee their concourses; each authority can pass the buck: If everyone\u2019s responsible, nobody\u2019s is.<\/p>\n

This mess calls for leadership, something New York and New Jersey politicians plainly can\u2019t manage.<\/p>\n

Happily, President Donald Trump has taken control of the planned massive reconstruction of Penn Station.<\/p>\n

That work can make at least some interior changes that discourage vagrants from congregating, but it should bring management <\/em>changes, too.<\/p>\n

Put one central authority in charge of policing Penn; figure out how to close all areas for at least an hour or three overnight. <\/p>\n

Heck, Mr. President, don\u2019t wait on final rebuild plans to start cracking down: Begin setting Penn Station straight now<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Read more Joe Biden and Xavier Becerra winked at massive child-trafficking<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Penn Station doesn’t have to be a homeless-plagued disaster zone \u2014 just look at Grand Central Terminal.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2105,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2106","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-opinion"],"yoast_head":"\nReal leadership can save Penn Station from its homeless plague, Mr. President - Metro Transit Review<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=2106\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Real leadership can save Penn Station from its homeless plague, Mr. President - Metro Transit Review\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Penn Station doesn't have to be a homeless-plagued disaster zone \u2014 just look at Grand Central Terminal.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=2106\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Metro Transit Review\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-06-15T11:07:33+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/?p=2106#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/?p=2106\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/7cd7bd9683106710eed62ba5da559b14\"},\"headline\":\"Real leadership can save Penn Station from its homeless plague, Mr. President\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-15T11:07:33+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/?p=2106\"},\"wordCount\":400,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/?p=2106#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/6650614a412c872692382e57ee363657.webp\",\"articleSection\":[\"Opinion\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/?p=2106#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/?p=2106\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/?p=2106\",\"name\":\"Real leadership can save Penn Station from its homeless plague, Mr. President - 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