Biden allocates $16.4 billion to improve railways in the northeastern United States | Economy

United States President Joe Biden received this title Amtrak Go For the almost daily trips he made between Wilmington (Delaware) and Washington when he was a Senator. Amtrak is the American government's intercity passenger train network. The president chose the city of Wilmington, where the train station bears his name, to announce on Monday a multimillion-dollar investment to modernize the Northeast rail corridor, the busiest in the country. There will be $16.4 billion (about 15,282 million euros) in 25 projects in Amtrak's Northeast Corridor.

The infrastructure bill, approved in Congress in 2021 with bipartisan support, provides for total rail investments of $66 billion, the largest since Amtrak was created in 1971. One year before the election, mobilizing public investment is a trump card to play. President to boost the economy and restore his popularity in the face of a re-election that is expected to be very close.

The investments announced Monday will rebuild tunnels and bridges that are more than 100 years old; It will improve roads, electrical systems, signals, stations and other infrastructure; It will develop future projects to dramatically improve travel times by increasing speeds and reducing delays, according to the White House.

Combined with Amtrak's nearly $9 billion fleet replacement program, which will replace more than 1,000 locomotives and train cars with state-of-the-art American-made equipment, these investments will ensure train service is more comfortable and environmentally friendly than driving or flying. According to the Biden administration. The financing will also help create more than 100,000 jobs in the construction field.

The Northeast Corridor extends from Boston to Washington and transports about 800,000 passengers daily in an area that represents 20% of the United States’ gross domestic product. The trains carry five times more passengers than all flights between Washington and New York. Despite this, much of its infrastructure is neglected, as the corridor has not been the subject of major investment in generations. Many of the existing bridges and tunnels were built in the early 1900s, and some investments date back to the 1830s.

Of the new money announced by Biden, the largest amount, $4.7 billion, is earmarked for the Frederick Douglass (MD) Tunnel, which will replace the 150-year-old Baltimore and Potomac Tunnel, whose narrow bends and steep inclines force trains to run. Reduce speed to 30 mph (48 km/h). It is the largest bottleneck on the route between Washington and New Jersey, causing delays of more than 10% of trains daily. The new tunnel will allow speeds of up to 110 mph (177 km/h). Biden already visited the tunnel in January to announce the signing of the project initiation agreement, and construction work, which is now receiving these funds, has been underway since March.

Another 3.8 billion will be used to rehabilitate and expand the Hudson River Tunnel between New York and New Jersey, which is more than 100 years old, serves 200,000 passengers daily, and was damaged by Hurricane Sandy. Combined with other investments, the Biden administration's total commitment to the tunnel project will reach a record $11 billion. The Hudson Tunnel Project is a key component of the Gateway Program, a large-scale rail investment program that will improve passenger and intercity services. According to the White House, resolving this critical choke point is critical to the Northeast regional economy.

The package announced by Biden includes another $2.1 billion to replace the 100-year-old railroad bridge over the Susquehanna River (in Maryland) with two new tracks that will increase speeds from 90 to 125 mph and improve trip reliability and duration. Nearly 19,000 passengers travel across the existing bridge every weekday, which is also used for freight traffic. In addition, the current drawbridge will be replaced with high-level fixed bridges, which will also improve navigation for boats on the Susquehanna River.

$1.6 billion has also been allocated to repair and rehabilitate 19 miles of the Amtrak-owned Hell Gate Line, including tracks, bridges and signals. The project will provide Metro-North service to Penn Station, increase Amtrak service and reduce local transit travel time from the Bronx to Manhattan. Another $827 million is to replace a 116-year-old bridge over the Connecticut River in the state of the same name with a new drawbridge that will increase speeds from 45 to 70 miles per hour. Its construction will begin in 2024.

There is no high speed

Despite the busy nature of the Northeast Corridor, it does not have a high-speed line and is not planned. Acela trains, the fastest trains connecting Washington and New York, take at least 2 hours and 45 minutes, including intermediate stops, to cover a distance of about 364 kilometers and are only able to reach speed at a fraction. 150 miles (240 kilometers) per hour. The new awarded projects will improve the duration of trips not only because of the increased speed sections, but also because they will reduce delays associated with the ongoing maintenance and repair of aging infrastructure.

The package announced by Biden includes a planning study to examine opportunities to increase speed and reduce travel time between Washington and New York. Another will examine future infrastructure options to improve the speed, endurance, performance and capacity of faster trains traveling through Connecticut and Rhode Island.

Follow all information Economy And a job in Facebook And sor in our Weekly newsletter