Malloy: Connecticut supports FRA's Northeast Corridor plan with conditions

Connecticut Gov. Dannel Malloy has asked the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) to table consideration of new alignment of tracks on the Northeast Corridor (NEC) through Connecticut.

In a letter sent March 2 to the FRA, the governor suggested that such investment should instead go toward maintaining the corridor in a state of good repair.

Malloy told the FRA that the state would officially support the agency's planned "Record of Decision" for its NEC Future Tier 1 Final Environmental Impact Statement on the premise that it will:
• identify specific investments that will achieve a state of good repair and enhance performance of the NEC;
• eliminate any specific "alternative alignments";
• has the support of all appropriate U.S. Department of Transportation agencies, not just the FRA; and
• articulates a simplified environmental approval process for critical projects.

Malloy also urged the FRA to speed up approval of projects in progress so that near-term investments can proceed without delay. He also recommended that the NEC Commission lead the drafting of a service development plan and partner with all NEC states, as well as Amtrak, the FRA and Federal Transit Administration.

"NEC Future has set the stage for an investment program that is essential to reverse decades of underinvestment in the corridor and advance significant infrastructure improvements," Malloy wrote. "We see the issuance of the Record of Decision (ROD) as a critical next step to advance sorely needed investments in the NEC and to expedite their implementation."