At The Controls: Behind The Scenes With The Brains Running Penn Station
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- The people at the controls of Penn Station are responsible for making sure 600,000 people get in and out safely every day.
We've seen what can happen when the system fails -- endless delays, and plenty of frustration for commuters.
CBS2's Ali Bauman went to find out, who exactly is trusted to make things run smoothly.
Blocks away from Penn Station in a top-secret location are the brains behind Amtrak's entire New York operation -- dispatchers from central control route every single Amtrak and LIRR train that pulls into Penn.
"Which track does the train go to? Which track is available? Who goes first?" Amtrak NY, deputy manager, Steven Young said.
NJ TRANSIT tracks are handled separately and have a whole separate control room.
Each dispatcher has a sole responsibility over one section of the criss-crossing tracks in Penn, making sure trains funnel through smoothly, one at a time, even when they're late.
"If a transit train is on time, and an Amtrak train is three or four late, the on time train goes, that's just the way it is, and if we choose to do it another way, which happens, and the Amtrak train goes, that's called a preference, and I'll get a call from NJ TRANSIT to point that out," Young said.
So why do passengers feel like it takes so long when a derailment disrupts the station's flow?
"Their first priority is the derailed train, second priority is trains approaching to get them to safety, and then after they got that all taken care of, then everyone starts to put a plan together for how much service we can support," Young said.
Typically, these dispatchers control 1,300 trains in and out of Penn, but that's been cut during the summer's emergency rail repairs -- Amtrak is down 23 trains, LIRR is down 36, and NJ TRANSIT is down 69.
Dispatchers are adjusting to a new rush hour routine.
"My biggest concern was that the train schedule wouldn't work, because if it didn't we wouldn't look very good," Young said.
The deputy manager said Amtrak is happy with the schedule changes for construction, and assures that once everything is complete the control center will be able to snap back to regular operations seamlessly.
Dispatchers are strongly encouraged to stay at their desks during the morning, and evening rush, and must take lunch breaks in their seats.
