$16 Billion NY-NJ Rail Tunnel Gets Billions In Funding From Feds

By FrumNews.com

The long-delayed “Gateway Project,” which would construct new rail tunnels under the Hudson River, has secured another whopping $6.9 billion in federal grants from the Federal Transit Administration—the largest grant ever signed by the agency. 

The tunnels are at the center of “The Gateway Project,” which will ease congestion along the Amtrak route. It includes a new tunnel under the Hudson River and rehabilitates the existing century-old tunnel.

The old tunnel was destroyed during Hurricane Sandy and needs to be rehabilitated. Even before Sandy, efforts were made to eliminate the bottleneck by adding a new tunnel, resulting in four modern tracks between New York and New Jersey. 

Currently, New Jersey Transit and Amtrak trains have to pass through a one-track tunnel to enter Manhattan. A small disruption to the narrow passage can ripple across both train lines and cause headaches for commuters. The issue came to a head last month when wire issues and a disabled train disrupted Amtrak and NJ Transit service for hours.

Political leaders in DC and the Tristate area have rushed to secure funding ahead of the November election. Politics has pushed the program to the curb before. Then-Gov. Chris Christie canceled a previous iteration of the project and said that New Jersey residents cannot be subject to unfair shouldering. The Trump administration also stalled funding efforts for the project.

The funding comes from Biden’s Infrastructure bill, which passed in 2021. Federal funds now total 12 billion dollars for the project. $1 Billion will be paid by Amtrak, and the rest by New York and New Jersey. 

The complete project is projected to be completed by 2038. In addition, the project will provide the capability to significantly expand capacity in the future.