However, it is largely being funded by money from New York taxpayers. Most of who will never have a need to visit the new station, other than an occasional jaunt out to Jersey for a wedding or to visit the shore (another benefit for Jersey taxpayers). Does this make any sense? Maybe the opposite makes more sense.

Maybe we should build a no-frills station for NJ Transit riders across 8th avenue and then let MSG build a new arena on top. Then we can build a new, state of the art Penn Station - or Moynihan Station if you prefer - where New York commuters will be able to reap the benefits of all that overspending.

Second, there is the notion that we can bring back the wonderful old station that in a moment of insanity we tore down for the bland commuter terminal that currently exists. Haven't we learned yet, you can never go back. We can't even get a two-tower design to replace what we lost at the WTC site. Do we really think we can bring back something built in another era at a cost that makes any sense? There's a reason we don't build much with limestone anymore, you know.

So what we are talking about is not a structure that brings back something we lost decades ago, but something totally new and nice to look at. That's fine, as long we build it in the right place, at the right time, and for the right reason. Doing this across 8th avenue where it doesn't serve NY commuters makes no sense in any way whatsoever.

While we're at it, let be honest, there really is no urgent need at all for a new station. So the current Penn Station is dull and drab. So it doesn't have the majesty that the old station supposedly possessed. It serves its purpose, and it does so exceedingly well.

LIRR, Amtrak and NJ Transit all occupy totally different parts of Penn, with the subways feeding right into all of them seamlessly. Moving one doesn't make any more room for the others. And even if the Garden moves across the street and they put huge glass ceilings across Penn so commuters can see the sky while they wait for their train, does that translate into an improvement in service? Clearly not.

I lived in eastern Queens for 15 years and frequently took the LIRR, at some points on a daily basis. The biggest problem at Penn is not overcrowding in the station, or the lack of a waiting room, but the overcrowding on the trains during rush hours. Commuters would be far better served by more service instead of a grandiose project designed more to be a feather in certain politicians' caps than a benefit to New York's commuters.

Of course, that doesn't even take into account the wisdom of asking New York taxpayers to pay for something like this right now when we have so many other budget issues that must be dealt with, like looming budget deficits, the CFE decision, election year tax cut promises, other more urgent infrastructure needs, and the list goes on.

There is no urgency for this project. Let's put it on the back burner and wait till we have a proposal the serves New Yorkers first and foremost, makes economic sense, and makes it near the top of the To Do list. Until then, bye bye Moynihan Station, we hardly knew ya.