NYC’s New Moynihan Train Hall Features 1,700 SF Of 4mm LED

January 5, 2021 by Dave Haynes

The Moynihan Train Hall opened for passengers last week in midtown New York City – an expanded, much more open and welcoming section of NYC Penn Station.

Among the big visual features in open atrium passenger hall is a giant, old school analog clock and some 1,700 sq. feet of 4mm direct view LED.

The 255,000 sq. foot transit hub is part of a mixed-use development that crosses 8^th Avenue into the historic James A. Farley Post Office Building – the massive stone building across the street from the cavern-like, convoluted dump that is the main Penn Station, which sits below Madison Square Gardens.

I’m not sure about manufacturers, but the LED displays and LCDs went in and are managed via the NYC solutions firm ANC.

Says ANC in a press release:

The new train station, a tangible link to New York’s grand history, features a modern digital passenger experience courtesy ANC, an experience design and execution company. Partnering with Empire State Development Corporation, ANC’s role as lead integrator in the project has created a dynamic digital media network aimed at improving passenger connectivity and comfort. 

ANC completed its work in two phases. Phase I featured deployment of more than 1,700 square feet of 4mm LED throughout the train hall. It includes digital screens in a range of sizes; LCD kiosks; and a unique trapezoid-shaped display in the north entrance stairwell. Ceiling box screens alongside glass lighting fins in the east bay simulate the sky.

The displays have live video capabilities and regularly feature important updates for passengers, along with NY-centric visuals to promote travel and create a more relaxing commuter environment. Phase II deployment integrated 150 assets, including LCD and fine-pitch LED displays unique to national transit stations to ensure a variety of passenger information from multiple transit entities are easy to find. 

The PR also notes:

The train station now features live video capability and real-time transit updates through its complete digital network. Additionally, ANC’s content management system, LiveSync, combines information from three different transit providers, the Metropolitan Transit Authority, the Long Island Rail Road and Amtrak, to display complex train times and information for each transit authority across the digital network.

The system put in was done by Sensory Interactive: Using state-of-the-art technology, the company implemented a Dynamic Real Estate platform. This seamless digital information experience integrates transit information, wayfinding, community messaging, and advertising content into a cohesive promotional platform that generates and maximizes long-term revenue.

“We were asked to advance a preliminary assessment of how a promotional platform would be integrated into the Moynihan Train Hall. Our experience and the vision of our team provided multiple alternatives about scale, location, and mix for platform assets with the requirements of the railroad information systems,” says William J. Nitzel, Managing Director of Project Management at Sensory Interactive. “We helped them find and define asset locations, so they were assured people moving throughout the train hall would be engaged, and brands would have the opportunity to connect with the train hall audience.”

There are also screens in the new commuter hub, via the DOOH network operator Pearl Media.