The governors of New Jersey and New York on Tuesday submitted a plan to President Obama to fund a new Hudson River rail tunnel, proposing that the federal government cover half the cost of the estimated $20 billion project.
Building a new tunnel has long been seen as a priority among state and federal officials, and New Jersey lawmakers on Tuesday praised the plan as an important first step. A new tunnel is expected to double capacity between the two states.
"The key step on the tunnel is to secure federal funding and design a viable financial package," New Jersey's Gov. Christie and New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo wrote to Obama. "No other option is feasible."
The governors acknowledged that "rail delays due to tunnel damage already occur with unfortunate frequency," adding that the existing 105-year-old tunnel had been "deteriorating for years and is now well beyond critical in its need for repair."
In addition to connecting New Jersey to New York City, the tunnel is the "linchpin" for Amtrak's Northeast Corridor, which is used by 750,000 passengers daily, the governors wrote.
Christie and Cuomo wrote that if the federal government could provide $10 billion in grants, the two states and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey would "take responsibility for developing a funding plan for the other half."
The federal funding would need congressional approval.
They also said the federal government would need to expedite environmental and planning approvals.
The letter came after New Jersey's two U.S. senators, Democrats Cory Booker and Bob Menendez, met in late August with Christie and Obama's transportation secretary, Anthony Foxx, to discuss the project.
The previous month, Foxx said inaction on the tunnel was "almost criminal."
New Jersey Senate President Stephen Sweeney (D., Gloucester) praised the plan and called for the federal government "to act quickly to both match the local commitment and expedite the project."
"Until we do, commuters will continue to suffer delays and overcrowding," Sweeney said in a statement.
The push for a new tunnel is a delicate political issue for Christie, a Republican. In 2010, he killed a similar project, known as the Access to the Region's Core (ARC) tunnel, citing concerns about cost overruns. Two years later, the federal Government Accountability Office released a report casting doubt on Christie's claims.
Democrats believed Christie canceled the project so he could redirect state funds to New Jersey's Transportation Trust Fund, and thus avoid having to raise the gas tax.
Martin Robins, who was project director for the ARC tunnel, called the latest plan "a second bite at the apple."
"It sounds to me like they're getting it right," he said in an interview Tuesday. "There's a lot of details that need to be worked out but the general thrust of it is very, very positive."
(c)2015 The Philadelphia Inquirer
