WASHINGTON — Amtrak received almost $200 million in the Federal Railroad Administration’s Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements grants announced Monday, a list of awards highlighted by the more than $178 million for the restoration of Gulf Coast passenger service [see “Federal Railroad Administration awards more than $1.4 billion,” Trains News Wire, Sept. 24, 2023].
Other major awards received by Amtrak include up to $8.8 million for fencing along the Northeast Corridor; up to $8.8 million for a workforce development apprenticeship training program; and up to $1.826 million for a grade crossing improvement program in Mississippi and Louisiana, in partnership with Canadian National Railway and the two states to address crossings along the City of New Orleans route. Amtrak will provide a 20% non-federal match to all three projects.
“The CRISI grants announced today will help launch new and expanded service, advance critical safety and reliability improvements, and provide opportunities for the workforce, marking another big milestone as we continue to advance a new era of passenger rail,” Amtrak CEO Stephen Gardner said in a press release.
Amtrak said it had also supported grants by other entities which had received funding, including the Massachusetts Department of Transportation’s Springfield-Worcester line improvement project; the Virginia Passenger Rail Authority’s Franconia-Springfield bypass project; MARC’s Penn-Camden line connector; Birmingham Department of Transportation’s REDESIGN Alabama project; and the Capitol Corridor Joint Powers Authority’s Sacramento-Roseville third-track project.
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