MTA’s Park Avenue Viaduct Structural Replacement Work Completed 60 Months Ahead of Schedule

Marc A. Hermann / MTA

NEW YORK CITY - Major structural replacement work on the MTA's Park Avenue Viaduct project has completed $195 million under budget and 60 months ahead of schedule.

Construction on the project began in October 2023, and in October 2025, the MTA completed Phase 1 of bridge replacement work on the project. The Park Avenue Viaduct is 133 years old and carries four tracks above Park Avenue from East 97th Street to the Harlem river. Because half of the viaduct’s girders were well over a century old, the MTA began the project to reconstruct portions of the viaduct between East 110th Street and the Harlem River Lift Bridge. This includes replacing sections between East 115th Street and East 132nd Street.

Now, the MTA reports crews have replaced 196 bridge structures and 12,600 feet of railroad over the course of 28 weekends, bringing the phase 2 work to a close 60 months ahead of schedule. The project, totaling $765 million, carries 98% of all Metro-North Railroad service and all trains traveling in and out of Grand Central Terminal. What remains of the project includes replacing track, installing cable, and removing temporary fencing and girders. This is expected to be completed by September 2027.

Park Avenue Viaduct Timelapse Video

The structural replacement work took place over 28 weekends without delaying any trains. According to the release, this was achieved due to the MTA employing the use of multiple custom-designed gantry systems to lift and place prefabricated bridge units. The gantries are different than traditional crane operation, and as such, they allowed for work within tight work windows. Within enclosed work zones between active tracks, crews used an intertrack containment system. This system allowed “construction to proceed safely while trains continued operating on adjacent tracks.”

MTA Chair and CEO Janno Lieber said, “This project is the gold standard for major infrastructure work — modernize what matters most, without making riders suffer through disrupted service. The Park Avenue Viaduct may not be glamorous, but its continued deterioration was a real threat to the entire Metro-North system.”

MTA Construction & Development President Jamie Torres-Springer said, “The Park Avenue Viaduct replacement is proof that modernization doesn’t have to come at the expense of great service. Using creative design and construction innovations, this project is a hallmark example of how the MTA is delivering major upgrades across the system better, faster, and cheaper — and all while keeping New Yorkers moving.”

Metro-North Railroad President Justin Vonashek said, “This project touches nearly every Metro-North customer and completing structural work of this scale without delaying a single train is an extraordinary achievement. The modernized viaduct will remain a central artery of Metro-North’s operations, supporting safe, reliable service to and from Grand Central Terminal for decades to come.”