Parts of Penn Station will close on World Cup match days this summer for everyone except ticketholders to the soccer tournament — potentially leaving New Jersey commuters high and dry, according to a report.
The plan, first reported by NorthJersey.com on Monday, would keep NJ Transit commuters from traveling on Garden State-bound trains at the Midtown hub for four hours before World Cup matches start.
NYC’s Penn Station will partially close for World Cup matches this summer. Reena Rose Sibayan for NY PostInstead, World Cup ticketholders would be able to enter Penn Station at its 32nd and 33rd street entrances along Seventh Avenue for their treks to MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, NJ, according to the report.
The potential delays would unfold during eight World Cup matches, including four during commuter-heavy weekdays, the report said.
Amtrak and Long Island Rail Road riders would be directed to other entrances at Penn Station.
Several matches and the championship will be held in New Jersey. APA spokesperson for the New York-New Jersey World Cup host committee didn’t deny parts of Penn Station could be closed except to ticketholders — but stressed the final plan hasn’t yet been set.
“We are working closely with FIFA and our regional transportation partners to finalize a comprehensive mobility plan for the tournament,” the spokesperson told The Post.
“We will not speak to specific details until the full plan is released, which we look forward to announcing in the coming weeks.”
Ameerah Ali, 26, a Garden State resident who works in the Big Apple, said the move would be just the latest inconvenience for NJ Transit riders such as herself.
The plan would keep NJ Transit commuters from traveling on Garden State-bound trains. Christopher Sadowski“That’s so stupid, that’s really stupid,” she said at Penn Station on Monday. “They don’t need to do that.”
Kassem Kamara, 31, who also commutes to the city from New Jersey for his nursing job, dryly wondered if long-suffering NJ Transit passengers would notice much of a difference.
“These trains have delays every single day regardless,” he said. “So, it doesn’t really matter – World Cup or no World Cup, it’s the same”
Ben, a 51-year-old New Jersey resident waiting for a train at Penn Station, simply laughed when told about the plan.
“It’s insane,” he said.
A representative for the MTA referred The Post to the host committee for comment, but emphasized the LIRR Concourse at Penn Station and subway stations would not be closed.
