The gleaming, new station was built 17 stories below street level beneath Vanderbilt Avenue. It features the longest escalators in the city: 180 feet. From the mezzanine, travelers can depart from Grand Central Madison’s main entrance at the southeast corner of Madison Avenue and East 47th Street or four other street-level points.
The players
MTA officials have long spoken about East Side Access as a critical expansion for Long Island residents, and certain Queens residents, that can serve as an economic driver for the region. MTA Chairman and CEO Janno Lieber, after riding the inaugural shuttle into Grand Central Madison with Gov. Kathy Hochul on Wednesday, emphasized that the rail link has benefits beyond saving time for Long Island commuters. It also makes it easier for workers to reverse-commute to the island, he said.
“This project brings Long Island closer to the heart of New York City,” Lieber told reporters. “It’s going to benefit Long Islanders with shorter commutes. But you can’t forget about the Long Island businesses that, for the first time, are going to be able to recruit from the entire region.”
Since taking over as governor in 2021, Hochul has been a vocal cheerleader for the project. The completion of East Side Access under her leadership might curry favor with Long Island voters—a majority of whom supported her Republican challenger last year, former Rep. Lee Zeldin of Long Island.
“For those who have to backtrack [from] Penn Station to the East Side, those days are over,” Hochul told reporters. “And for the businesses that are struggling after the pandemic, trying to get workers back, they have one more reason to say, ‘Come on back. You can have a beautiful ride, get time back in your life and not have to crisscross across the borough.’”