SEPTA to receive $10 million TIGER V grant for rail line upgrades

The Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) will receive a $10 million Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) V grant to improve rail infrastructure, federal and agency officials announced yesterday.

SEPTA will use the grant to expand rail lines in Bucks County, which will separate freight and passenger routes on the agency's West Trenton Regional Rail Line. Currently, the six-mile stretch of CSX Transportation-owned line between Middletown, Pa., and West Trenton, N.J., is a "choke point" for transportation, officials said in a press release.

"This investment solidifies the role of rail service and ensures that it can best work for businesses and citizens," said U.S. Rep. Mike Fitzpatrick (D-Pa.).

The grant will help pay for construction of the new railway, as well as for SEPTA and CSX to upgrade their lines to meet new federal positive train control regulations.

The West Trenton Regional Line is SEPTA's third-highest ridership route. Daily ridership has grown by nearly 2,000 riders over the past decade, with future growth anticipated, SEPTA officials said.