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11/6/2023
President Joe Biden will ride an Amtrak train to Delaware today to announce the award of $16.4 billion for 25 passenger-rail projects designed to improve critical infrastructure along the Northeast Corridor (NEC).
The funding includes nearly $10 billion for Amtrak to modernize critical infrastructure, improve stations and support future ridership growth on the NEC.
Among the 12 Amtrak-led projects that will receive funding through the Federal Railroad Administration’s Federal-State Partnership for Intercity Passenger Rail Program include the:• Frederick Douglass Tunnel Program, $4.7 billion;• Susquehanna River Rail Bridge, $2.08 billion;• East River Tunnel Rehabilitation, $1.26 billion;• Connecticut River Bridge Replacement, $826.6 million; and• Baltimore Penn Station Redevelopment, $108.3 million.
"These grants will help advance Amtrak's plans to modernize the Northeast Corridor and unlock major bottlenecks on the busiest passenger rail corridor in America," said Amtrak CEO Stephen Gardner in a press release.
Another 13 NEC projects led by Amtrak partners to receive funding include:• Hudson Tunnel, Gateway Development Commission, $3.8 billion;• Penn Station Access, Metropolitan Transportation Authority, $1.64 billion;• Walk Bridge replacement, Connecticut Department of Transportation, $465 million;• Delco Lead, New Jersey Transit, $180.9 million; and• Hartford Line Rail Program Double Track, Phase 3B, CTDOT $104.9 million.
Funding for the 25 projects comes from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act that Biden signed in November 2021. The law included unprecedented federal investments in rail. The funded projects announced today will replace or repair NEC infrastructure that has been in need of major upgrades for decades, said FRA Administrator Amit Bose.
The NEC is one of the busiest and economically vital transportation systems in the world, serving the Northeast's five major metropolitan regions — Boston, New York City, Philadelphia, Baltimore and Washington, D.C. Hundreds of thousands of people rely on the 2,200 Amtrak, commuter and freight trains that operate over some portion of the route each day.