N.J., N.Y. congressmen call on Chao to fund Gateway rail project

U.S. Reps. Donald Payne (D-N.J.) and Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.) are calling on U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao and the Trump administration to commit to funding the Gateway project to build a new passenger-rail tunnel between New York and New Jersey.

In a letter sent to Chao last week, the lawmakers disputed Deputy Federal Transit Administrator Jane Williams' claim last month that the U.S. Department of Transportation did not have an agreement with New York and New Jersey state officials to share in the project's multi-billion-dollar cost.

"Jane Williams' claims that Gateway is merely a project of local concern and that there is no agreement for the federal government to cover half of its cost are patently false," Payne said in a press release.

"The Gateway project is the most important transportation infrastructure in the country," said Nadler. "It's a critical and vital national project, and if we don't build this project and repair the century-old tunnels underneath the Hudson, then we risk disrupting up to 75 percent of all train traffic from west of the Hudson. That's 75 percent of all Amtrak and NJ Transit passengers."

The states of New York and New Jersey have committed to funding $5 billion for the project, which represents more than half of the project's cost, Nadler noted.

"It's time that the federal government honor its commitment and provide funding for this national project," he added.

Payne and Nadler's letter was signed by a bipartisan group of lawmakers.