Help needed figuring out NY Penn Station

[AmtrakBlue]

Lost in Penn Station? Amtrak Has an App to Guide You

Pennsylvania Station in Manhattan is such a confusing, multilevel maze of corridors lined with pizza parlors and coffee shops that even veteran commuters occasionally get lost.

Starting on Wednesday, Amtrak, the national railroad that serves as the station’s landlord, will offer a guiding light in the form of a smartphone app. The free app, FindYourWay, was designed to help travelers navigate the labyrinthine station and to avoid the crowds that form around the electronic boards that provide train information.

“The experience in Penn Station, if you’re not there every day, can be daunting,” said Bob Dorsch, an Amtrak executive who oversaw the creation of the app. “We know that a ton of our customers stand at that big board and wait for the train gate to come up and scurry off to the ramp.”

Initially, the app will provide real-time information only about Amtrak’s trains, but Mr. Dorsch said Amtrak hoped eventually to include information about the commuter trains as well. And Ms. Hennessy said Amtrak hoped to add other stations around the country to the app.

“If we’re able to implement something here, doing it in Boston, doing it in Chicago, doing it in Philadelphia is almost a piece of cake,” she said, alluding to the bewildering complexity of Penn Station and the 650,000 people who pass through it on a typical weekday.

Downloaded it. Probably won't get around to using it till next year's gathering.

 

[willem]

Downloaded it.

I wonder why I need to provide a name and phone number just to see what the app can do. Yes, I could give it a fake name and phone number, but then I apparently couldn't use the app fully when I'm actually in Penn Station and want to take advantage of its alleged features. Would the app really be worthless to an anonymous individual?

 

[Devil's Advocate]

NYP needs improved physical signage more than anything else. Benefits everyone, difficult to hack, doesn't require updates every few months, and has the potential to help anyone. But no, let's ignore that problem and make yet another single purpose app in a sea of millions of other single purpose apps.

 

[HP_Lovecraft]

NYP needs improved physical signage more than anything else. Benefits everyone, difficult to hack, doesn't require updates every few months, and has the potential to help anyone. But no, let's ignore that problem and make yet another single purpose app in a sea of millions of other single purpose apps.

I agree about the signs. I've been lost plenty of times with my kids. The layout is not really that confusing, but there are plenty of intersections without proper signage. At least once I've found myself doing a complete circle while trying to find the 8th ave exit.

Earlier this year, coming down from Boston, we thought it would be fun to get off in New Haven, then take the Metro into Grand Central. It was such a dramatically more pleasant experience.

 

[Ziv]

I would agree about New Yorkers being decent people. I wouldn't jump in their face, mind you, but when my girlfriend & I were lost and I was trying to surreptitiously figure out where I was on a map, I had a delivery truck driver stop and jump out to help me. I had a similar a similar situation when I was at Delmonico's Market and mentioned that I was going to drop off my groceries at my hotel and then walk to Sarge's Deli. The counter man drew me a map just to make sure I didn't get lost, not that it was hard to find Sarge's. They are kind of competitors, so it was doubly welcome. New Yorkers are proud of their city and many of them like to share their favorite delis or stores with visitors.

...but some of the things I find on Google make me worry a bit. Don't make eye contact with New Yorkers, don't smile at them, don't engage in conversation beyond asking directions and then quickly move away. This should be interesting!

I don't know where those horror stories are coming from. In my experience, New Yorkers are just fine, and I think a grandmother and granddaughter shouldn't have any problems with the people.

 

[jis]

NYP needs improved physical signage more than anything else. Benefits everyone, difficult to hack, doesn't require updates every few months, and has the potential to help anyone. But no, let's ignore that problem and make yet another single purpose app in a sea of millions of other single purpose apps.

I agree completely. An App is a very poor substitute for covering the failure to provide adequate signage.

Personally, I have NYP completely figured out, having used it regularly for forty years now. But yeah, with the poor signage it can be pretty mind boggling for the infrequent user, even though I dare say that inherently it is much less complex than say Shinjuku in Tokyo, or even the Kings Cross - St. Pancras complex in London or the Gare de l'Est - Gare du Nord - Magenta (RER-E) complex in Paris.