Schumer wants $2.2 billion for East Side Access Rail Project

Sen., Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) called on the Federal Railroad Administration to direct $2.2 billion in unused railroad funds forfeited by New Jersey's for the Access to the Region's Core tunnel project to cover the remaining costs of the East Side Access tunnel project. New Jersey was slated to receive funding of $2.2 billion of the $35 billion Railroad Rehabilitation & Improvement Financing program to move forward with the ARC tunnel. New Jersey Governor Chris Christie pulled the plug on the project, possibly making the East Side Access tunnel project the largest single infrastructure project in the country. "This project is one of the single-largest transportation initiatives in the country, it is a game changer for New York City and Long Island that will save untold amounts of travel time for millions of commuters and boost the city as the economic engine of the region," said Sen. Schumer. The East Side Access Project, a joint federal-state effort, is a rail link from the Long Island Rail Road, via the 63rd Street Tunnel, to Grand Central Terminal. The project is on trajectory to run out of funding at the end of 2011. Schumer urged U.S. Secretary of Transportation, Ray LaHood in a letter to break precedent for this project. "Bringing the East Side Access tunnel project to completion will not only enhance our transportation infrastructure enabling more efficient travel for Long Islanders into both Grand Central Terminal and Penn Station, but serve as an economic development juggernaut for the entire New York metropolitan region," said Sen. Schumer. Visit Senator Schumer's website to read the letter.