So, the "Summer of Hell" began this morning

The Amtrak tear down and rebuild of many tracks and supporting material began in earnest today and commuters were faced with new, convoluted and in many cases baffling changes to their daily commute into and out of NYC and the surround. Many experts and teevee pundits are convinced the end is nigh and this will be nothing but daily misery.

Johnny begs to differ.

People will find their new routes and it'll become old hand as others find theirs. Sooner rather than later people will settle back into routines and trouble spots will present themselves soon. Those can be addressed and or worked around. When I-96/I-275/M-14 in the Detroit area was closed off, which is closing off an entire heart valve to and from Detroit's west siiiiiide, people adapted and experts were surprised how quickly the doom of Old Valyria that was predicted faded away. Johnny thinks the same will happen here.

Here's the latest on the horror show that is NJ Transit/Amtrak and Penn Station

A story to kind of sum up what commuters can expect over the next few months possibly as Amtrak tries to get their shit together amid failing infrastructure. Expect a real shitshow.

Madison Square Garden sounds like it has become a red-headed stepchild

Yes you're iconic, yes you bring in huge money, yes it seems you have always been Penn Station's hat but you uh, might wanna pack your bags and find a new place to call home some regional planners and politicians are now saying. Despite the The Madison Square Garden Co. spending a billion dollars on the renovation of MSG the Regional Plan Association and Municipal Art Society are saying MSG should only get a ten year renewal lease and then find a new home.

NJ Transit, Amtrak and Long Island Rail Road wrote in a letter to the planning commission in part:

"Despite significant subsequent investments by the station’s rail carriers to better accommodate these passengers," the letter continued, "travelers have for decades been confined to functionally inadequate accommodations in the makeshift underground station, and have been hampered by severely limited street-level access at a handful of poorly marked and architecturally flawed entrances that are in some cases all but hidden from the street."

MSG said, and we quoteth:

"Adding an arbitrary expiration for reasons unrelated to the special permit process or requirements would not only set a dangerous and questionable precedent, but would also hinder our ability to make MSG and New York City the long-term home of even more world-class events, and would harm a business that has served as a significant economic driver for the city for generations."

We liked this quote from Drew Galloway, assistant vice president of policy and development at Amtrak:

"It’s like the Oklahoma Land Rush at 5 p.m. at 34th Street and 7th Avenue."

Suggestions on changes or improvements at olde Madison Square Garden?