WASHINGTON — The federal government has committed $6.88 billion to the Hudson River Tunnel project, the long-discussed additional connection between New York and New Jersey that will eventually double capacity into and out of New York’s Penn Station.
News of the funding commitment was tucked somewhat innocuously into a Federal Transportation Administration press release announcing that the FTA had given permission for the tunnel project to enter the engineering phase. In its seventh paragraph, it noted that “Once all financial, technical, and legal requirements are completed, FTA’s anticipated funding commitment to the Hudson River Tunnel project will be $6.88 billion, subject to annual appropriation of funds by Congress.”
But elected officials on both sides of the Hudson celebrated the funding commitment, with U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) saying on Twitter that the project will receive “the largest federal infrastructure grant in history,” and U.S. Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) using the same platform to say, “This historic $6.88B federal investment … is a win for regional connectivity and economic growth.”
The project — currently estimated to cost a total of $17.18 billion — will build two new tubes under the Hudson, then rehabilitate the existing 113-year-old tunnels which were damaged by flooding during Hurricane Sandy in 2012. New York and New Jersey have previously reached agreement on addressing their portion of the costs [see “New York, New Jersey sign agreement …,” Trains News Wire, July 7, 2022].
Approval for the project to enter the engineering phase, while small compared to the funding commitment, does carry its own significance. It gives the Gateway Development Commission, the multistate agency overseeing the project, authority to incur costs for engineering activities and other non-construction costs, such as utility relocation and property acquisition, and is a necessary step to unlock the access to the federal funds.
The New York Times reports that the commission’s chief executive, Kris Kolluri, said he was confident tunnel construction would begin this year and there would be no stopping it this time — a reference to an earlier Hudson tunnel project that began construction in 2009 but was canceled by then-New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie.
“I have never seen this level of cooperation,” Kolluri told the Times. “There’s no daylight between the state, local, and federal partners.”
Laura Mason, Amtrak executive vice president, capital delivery, said in a statement that the move to the engineering phase “has been years in the making, and we are thrilled to be even closer to the start of major construction on this critical Gateway Program project.”
Share this article
