The US Department of Transportation (DOT) has announced nearly 9 billion USD in funding to upgrade and expand passenger rail services along the Northeast Corridor (NEC).
These funds will be issued through the Federal-State Partnership for Intercity Passenger Rail Grant Program, which has grown significantly thanks to President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.
This latest investment will improve infrastructure, equipment, and facilities along the NEC, including bridges and tunnels, rail stations and track. These upgrades will help improve reliability and reduce delays for over 200 million annual trips that operate on the corridor.
“Every day, hundreds of thousands of Americans rely on the Northeast Corridor, our country's busiest rail route. Americans deserve to have the best rail system in the world, and the investments we are announcing today will serve to modernise the Northeast Corridor for generations of passengers.”
The Northeast Corridor stretches from Washington, D.C. to Boston and is the busiest passenger rail corridor in the US. As the number of passengers using this route continues to grow, with Amtrak ridership alone more than doubling in the last 12 months, it is vital to ensure the infrastructure remains up to date.
“Today’s investments are a major step towards reversing a half-century of underinvestment in vital rail infrastructure and will result in fewer delays for millions of riders and travellers. The expanded Partnership Program funded by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law will ensure that the Northeast Corridor thrives as the region’s economic and transportation backbone, while making its services more reliable, available, and accessible to even more people.”
Earlier this month, the FRA also made nearly 2.3 billion USD available through the Partnership Program for intercity and high-speed rail projects nationwide.
