Amtrak CEO confirms which two rail projects are a priority with new funding

Written by RT&S Staff
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The Amtrak accident in Kansas on June 27 was the second that involved fatalities in less than a year.
Amtrak

Waiting for a huge increase in allowance, you can’t blame Amtrak for making a wish list.

The passenger train service is expected to receive $66 billion in federal funding from the $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill that was passed last week.

Amtrak CEO Bill Flynn said $44 billion would go directly to the Federal Railroad Administration for state grants and other rail projects. A portion of the remaining $22 billion would be used for improvement projects across the Amtrak system.

The projects receiving the biggest amount of money are expected to be the Gateway Project, which calls for replacing the Hudson Tunnel that connects New York with New Jersey, and the Connecticut River Bridge Replacement Project.

Rail officials said the $66 billion is a down payment for decades of underinvestment by prior president administrations.

Flynn added Amtrak is excited about receiving the money, but noted future funding needs to happen to continue service upgrades. It cannot all stop with the $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill.

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