Thursday, the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) announced it had awarded more than $233 million in grants to modernize intercity passenger rail service.
The grants, funded by the Federal-State Partnership for State of Good Repair Program (Partnership Program), will provide money to 11 projects in eight states to help replace bridges and tunnels along the Northeast Corridor, as well as improve rail infrastructure in California, Michigan, Massachusetts, and Chicago.
“From Amtrak on the East and West Coasts to commuter rail in cities across the country, Americans rely on intercity passenger rail to travel, get to work, and visit loved ones,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. “The Partnership Program improves upon this safe, affordable, and environmentally-friendly mode of transportation and brings us closer to delivering the world-class passenger service Americans deserve.”
Among the awards was a $65.2 million grant for Connecticut to fund the Connecticut River Bridge Replacement Project. The project replaces the aging Connecticut River bridge with a more modern and resilient movable bridge. The project will improve maritime traffic, officials said, as well as improve safety, reliability, and trip time for users on Amtrak, Connecticut Shore Line East Commuter service, and freight trains.
New Jersey will receive more than $45 million for its Sawtooth Bridges Replacement Project. The proposed project will complete the final design for the Sawtooth Bridges that seeks to replace two 110-year-old railroad bridges in Kearney with three new ones. The new bridges will create a four-track segment between Newark, N.J., and New York City, N.Y., increasing redundancy, minimizing disruptions and delays during maintenance work, and improving the line’s reliability and capacity.
The Partnership Program also awarded Up to $28.2 million to New York for the Rhinecliff Station High Level Platform, Vertical Circulation, and Interlocking Project within the New York State Department of Transportation. That grant will fund the design and construction to replace a 520-foot-long low-level platform at Rhinecliff Station with a new, longer high-level platform, as well as the related track and signal work needed to increase operational flexibility for current and future demand.
Part of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the grants are part of an unprecedented $7.2 billion in funding annually over the next five years to enhance intercity rail programs.
“For years, the Partnership Program has helped bring intercity passenger rail services to a state of good repair by reducing the maintenance backlog and ensuring Americans are connected to opportunity and each other,” said FRA Administrator Amit Bose. “Under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the FRA now has the exciting opportunity to further this mission while making intercity passenger rail service available to even more communities.”