Every day it’s something. It’s all falling apart.
I made the sad decision to go to the station yesterday to get a ticket. It was a mess. They don’t even have the excuse of heat to blame for the wires this time.
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) today continued its historic investment in passenger rail with nearly $1.5 billion for 19 projects along the Northeast Corridor (NEC). Funding made possible by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and administered through FRA’s Federal-State Partnership for Intercity Passenger Rail Program (Fed-State NEC) will further repair and replace vital NEC infrastructure to provide faster, safer, and more reliable service for travelers and commuters.
Today’s announcement builds on more than $16.4 billion in Fed-State NEC grants announced in 2023 for projects along the corridor, such as the Gateway Program Hudson River Tunnel Project in New York and New Jersey, Susquehanna River Bridge Replacement Program in Maryland, Walk Bridge Replacement in Connecticut, and New York Penn Station Access Project—all of which have begun construction activities. The NEC grants are a subset of a historic $66 billion investment in America’s passenger rail network, including new high-speed rail services in the West to connect Southern California and Nevada and communities throughout California’s Central Valley, new and expanded passenger rail service to better connect the Southeast, restored service to connect multiple States across the Gulf Coast, and investments to further grow rail networks in the Midwest.
Projects in this round of selections will replace aging catenary structures susceptible to failures that contribute to travel delays, improve several signal systems necessary to increase capacity, operating speeds, and safety, and support planning activities to expand Washington Union Station in the Nation’s capital, among other projects, to further reduce the state-of-good-repair backlog on the corridor. Combined with other projects selected through Fed-State NEC and funded under the Biden-Harris Administration to upgrade NEC tunnels, bridges, and tracks, the improvements announced today will help minimize disruptions and delays and allow for increased speeds for travelers and commuters.
“The Biden-Harris Administration continues to make good on its promise to deliver the long-awaited, much-needed investments to modernize this critical route,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. “With the nearly $1.5 billion in funding we’re announcing today, we’re upgrading our rail infrastructure to support our economy and make service safer, faster, and more reliable for hundreds of thousands of passengers who depend on this route.”
The NEC is one of the busiest and most economically significant rail corridors in the world, with hundreds of thousands of daily riders in a region that represents 20 percent of the U.S. gross domestic product.
Through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, USDOT is investing billions of dollars in NEC projects that will benefit riders and the economy, up and down the corridor, with dozens of new projects that will create more than 100,000 jobs, opportunities for small businesses, and new economic activity. In the Northeast and every other region of the country, FRA is modernizing and expanding America’s passenger rail network in unprecedented ways, investing in approximately 320 projects and dozens of emerging passenger rail corridors.
“With today’s announcement, FRA has now announced grants for all major backlog projects in our NEC Project Inventory, a transparent and well-organized approach announced under the Biden-Harris Administration to modernize and improve America’s busiest rail corridor,” said FRA Administrator Amit Bose. “The Biden-Harris Administration put forth a bold vision for rail in America, and thanks to unprecedented investments in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and support from this Administration, that vision is taking hold in the Northeast and every region across the country.”
Fed-State NEC projects receiving funding this round include:
Pennsylvania – Mid-Atlantic OCS Replacement Program Phase 1: Zoo to Paoli Project (Up to $397,251,476)
Amtrak
The proposed project is for final design and construction activities to replace and upgrade the catenary power system on an 18-mile segment of the Amtrak-owned Keystone Line between the Zoo substation in Philadelphia and the Paoli substation in Paoli, PA. The project’s scope includes replacing the Bryn Mawr power substation, replacing overhead catenary structures, upgrading the signal power system, and installing new power transmission lines along the corridor. The catenary structures and much of the existing overhead catenary system was first installed in the 1910s. The project is a significant state-of-good-repair investment and is expected to increase operating speeds and reduce delays along this segment of the Keystone Line.District of Columbia – Washington Union Station Expansion Project (Up to $24,000,000)
Amtrak
The proposed project includes project development activities like design, utility, and geotechnical work, supporting plans to expand and modernize Washington Union Station in Washington, D.C. The project will realign and improve tracks, platforms, and concourses. The project also involves construction of a new bus facility, parking garage, and train hall, and improvements to bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure. Future construction of the project will improve the state of good repair of this major station on the Northeast Corridor and improve intercity passenger rail performance through a projected 50 percent decrease in boarding time and the reduction of Amtrak’s idle time at the station.New Jersey – County-Newark Catenary Upgrades Project (Up to $13,418,592)
Amtrak
The proposed project is for project development and final design to replace and upgrade the catenary system along a 23-mile stretch of the Northeast Corridor between New Brunswick and Newark, NJ. The catenary pole structures along this segment of the corridor date back to the 1930s, and the overhead wire is nearly 50 years old. The system is prone to failures that routinely impact reliability. The catenary structures and wire will be comprehensively replaced, and upon completion the project is anticipated to reduce catenary-related delays by at least 80 percent on this segment of the Northeast Corridor.Connecticut – Hartford Station Relocation Project (Up to $2,560,000)
Connecticut Department of TransportationThe proposed project is for project planning lifecycle stage activities to refine the alternatives for construction of a new Hartford train station and multimodal hub with associated realignment and double tracking of 2.1 miles of the New Haven-Hartford-Springfield corridor in Hartford, CT. Completing planning activities will prepare the project to proceed to later stages of development. Future construction of the project could improve intercity passenger rail service performance through increased operating speeds and reduced delays.
For the full list of Fiscal Year 2024 Fed-State NEC project selections, please click here.
Amtrak completed their Keystone line track replacement earlier than expected
After reevaluating all possible options, and in collaboration with commuter partners that utilize Penn Station, Amtrak is enhancing the Empire Service schedule in effect during construction work impacting Amtrak’s terminal in New York City. Beginning Monday, December 2, the new schedules will ensure that the trains used historically by more than 98 percent of Empire Service customers will be in service until Amtrak’s major tunnel work begins in the Spring. This includes:
- The Adirondack and Maple Leaf will again operate as separate trains between New York City and Albany and allow for reduced wait times in Albany for Upstate customers.
- Trains 235 and 238 will be restored.
- Amtrak will add a fifth train car to the following trains: 233, 234, 235, 238, 244 and 245.
These measures will be effective through Sunday, Mar. 2, 2025. Amtrak will continue to evaluate the service plan, including additional capacity, to see if there are any new possibilities for making improvements, restoring service or modifying it based on future development.
Today only flash sale
For travel between Jan 2/March 15
Amtrak’s new Acela trains are hopefully going to enter service in the spring of 2025.
I’ll believe it when I see it
Wearing a new passenger-car version of Amtrak’s Phase VII paint scheme, Viewliner I sleeper Iroquois River heads south on the Floridian at Fredericksburg, Va., on Dec. 14, 2024. Nathan Richters
I’m not a fan of their implementation of the phase VII livery. That livery doesn’t look good as a small strip. They should have wrapped the entire car much like how the new Airo sets are going to look.
Here’s the same viewliner car when it was in the shops being re-decorated
What an embarrassment. Amtrak’s current station in Miami is not served by Metrorail, Tri-Rail or Brightline. It’s in the middle of an industrial wasteland near Hialeah. And that will never change.
What a shame. Miami Airport offers direct access to Metrorail, local transit, and car rental agencies. It’s also closer to the city. The actual “Miami” station is further north from the actual city itself and has no direct access to even bus transit.
Then again, Florida is where transit projects go to die. Can’t be too surprised by this as anything that makes even a little bit of sense is generally shot down.
Why is this necessary?
I genuinely don’t know other than to remove the need to transfer to Penn Station, which is a hellscape, benefitting those who wish to go to other destinations along the NEC. The LIRR runs frequently enough that it’s probably redundant for the LIRR portion. It’ll also be more feasible once Amtrak’s new dual-mode trainsets arrive as the trains can switch to diesel once they leave Penn.
I do see a benefit of it possibly reducing Penn Station demand for Long Island residents as they can board at places such as Jamaica instead of trekking down to Penn. Also, if Amtrak can do it, there’s a tiny glimmer of hope that it can prove that through-running for NJ Transit is possible as improvements will be made to fit the Amtrak trains. One can only dream.
The actual proposal itself was mentioned last year.
Plans to lock the Dock Bridge at Newark Penn are moving forward. It is also expected to get a new coat of paint as well along with other repairs.
Delayed once again.
What else is new?
They’re now saying by 2026, Amtrak trains will run in Long Island. They also plan to have the station access to the airport which might make it a more popular choice for those wishing to avoid JFK or LGA and still want to go to the city.
Starting to make sense if they can link it to an airport.