A new report has found that the Northeast Corridor (NEC) contributes about $50 billion a year to the U.S. economy, making it a critical national asset.
The “Northeast Corridor and the American Economy” study, produced by the NEC Infrastructure and Operations Advisory Commission (NEC Commission), found that a loss of the NEC for just one day would have a nearly $100 million impact on the economy in terms of transportation-related issues and productivity losses.
“Our leaders in Washington need to read this report to understand the economic risk they are taking if they don’t act now to reverse decades of underinvestment in the aging and deteriorating infrastructure of the NEC,” Amtrak President and CEO Joe Boardman said.
The NEC mainline from Washington, D.C., to New York to Boston is a shared asset, used and supported by Amtrak, eight commuter rail operators, and freight railroads. The line connects eight states and the District of Columbia, transporting 750,000 Amtrak passengers and commuters per day on average.
According to the report, NEC carries more passengers in the NEC region than all the airlines combined and connects the national freight rail network on the east coast to Midwestern businesses and the global economy.
Previous reports found that “additional investment is necessary to renew and enhance the NEC as a world-class, high-performance rail corridor supporting the economic development and international competitiveness of the region and the nation.”
Amtrak worked closely with the NEC Commission as a member and worked with other participating agencies, including Northeast states and commuter and freight railroads, to create the report.