Amtrak crews sustain 115-year-old Hudson River tunnels as Gateway project advances

Amtrak crews continue nightly maintenance inside the aging Hudson River rail tunnels — a 115-year-old, two-tube system that carries more than 450 trains and 200,000 daily riders between New Jersey and New York City. According to New Jersey Monitor, the deteriorating tunnels, built in the early 1900s, remain a critical bottleneck for the Northeast Corridor and cannot be taken offline until new Gateway Program tunnels are completed in the 2030s. 

Each night, 20–30 Amtrak workers enter the tunnels to inspect concrete benchwalls, identify cracks and corrosion, and ensure the tubes remain safe and passable. The infrastructure sustained severe damage during Hurricane Sandy, when saltwater inundation accelerated long-term decay that continues to affect structural integrity and electrical systems.

Amtrak’s fire and life safety teams monitor the tunnels for fissures, wall degradation, and risks to signaling equipment mounted along the benchwalls, New Jersey Monitor reported. While the agency maintains that the tunnels remain operational due to extensive preventative work, officials acknowledge they are well past modern design life and prone to failure points typical of century-old concrete structures.

Major repairs cannot begin until a new pair of tunnels is built through the Gateway Program, now advancing with bridge relocations, early construction at Hudson Yards, and excavation preparation at the Palisades. Once one new tube opens — targeted for 2035 — Amtrak plans to take each existing tunnel offline for approximately 18 months for full rehabilitation.

Until then, the current tunnels remain the only rail connection for Amtrak and NJ Transit trains entering Manhattan. “If we didn’t keep up with maintenance, we would be at critical failure risk,” officials said, noting that flood doors and emergency egress systems are also part of ongoing readiness work.

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