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Last week, the New York state senate unveiled $22 million in specific initiatives that represent the first phase of a plan to “make high-speed rail a reality” in the Empire State, according to a statement issued by New York Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno.

The plan includes capital appropriations of $11 million to add a fourth track (and related signal work) at Albany-Rensselaer Station, $6 million to upgrade Hudson Station; and $4 million to stabilize the rock slope under the George Washington Bridge to increase train speed and improve safety.

Approved as part of the 2006-07 enacted budget, the plan is being advanced as the result of a recent agreement between the senate’s High-Speed Rail Task Force and the state Department of Transportation.

“We share the Senate's focus on the ‘upstate’ economy, and believe that bringing high-speed rail to New York will facilitate new investment and new jobs across the state,” said Kenneth Adams, president of The Business Council of NYS Inc., in a prepared statement.