Daily What?! The Curious Door to Nowhere in NYC’s Penn Station

Penn Station-Door to Nowhere-Amtrak Terminal-Auntie Anne Pretzels-NYC

Penn Station, even the current incarnation, is full of fun secrets–the subject of our upcoming tour on the Remnants of the Original Penn Station. Yesterday, we discovered a new curiosity: this door to nowhere in the Amtrak terminal. This is a question for all you intrepid Untapped readers out there. What is this door for?

Coming up from the Hilton Passageway into the Amtrak area, you’ll encounter this door up against the wall next to Auntie Anne’s Pretzels. Looking behind the door, there’s no opening either.

Penn Station-Door to Nowhere-Amtrak Terminal-Auntie Anne Pretzels-NYC-004

Penn Station-Door to Nowhere-Amtrak Terminal-Auntie Anne Pretzels-NYC-001

Penn Station-Door to Nowhere-Amtrak Terminal-Auntie Anne Pretzels-NYC-003

But there are locks on the front:

Penn Station-Door to Nowhere-Amtrak Terminal-Auntie Anne Pretzels-NYC-002

UPDATE: Reader Tony P has solved the mystery–it’s a metal accordion security gate:

Accordion Security Gate-Penn Station-Amtrak-Door to Nowhere-NYC

See more quirky NYC facts and discoveries in our “Daily What?!” series. Check out what may be the smallest door in the NYC subway. Get in touch with the author @untappedmich.

Michelle Young

Michelle is the founder of Untapped New York. She is the author of Secret Brooklyn: An Unusual Guide, New York: Hidden Bars & Restaurants, and Broadway. She is a graduate of Harvard College in the History of Art and Architecture and holds a master’s degree in urban planning from Columbia University Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation, where she is an Adjunct Professor of Architecture.