Happening Now
CONNECT 2037 Released
November 17, 2023
by Rail Passengers Staff
The Northeast Corridor Commission has released a 15-year plan, known as CONNECT NEC 2037 (C37), to improve commuter & intercity rail service along the 457-mile corridor from Washington, DC to Boston, MA. The plan calls for more frequent service, faster trains, and critical infrastructure improvements - funded by the Biden administration's $16.4 billion investment in place thanks to the 2021 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. The commission says that the plan will provide much-needed capacity, reliability, and improvements for the millions of passengers that use rail service in the northeast on a daily basis.
In a statement announcing the release of the full plan, Federal Railroad Administration Administrator Amit Bose was quoted:
"The Northeast Corridor is vital to hundreds of thousands of Americans and the American economy, and investing in it is a priority of the Biden-Harris Administration. Major projects are now receiving federal support, with the Federal Railroad Administration recently awarding $16.4 billion to 25 NEC projects through our Federal State Partnership Program. Projects like the Hudson River Tunnel have entered engineering with $6.8 billion through the Federal Transit Administration's Capital Investment Grant Program. The NEC represents infrastructure of national significance, and we look forward to working with Amtrak and state partners to maximize funding in President Biden's Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and to advance projects that reduce delays, allow for increased speeds, and make trips more reliable and convenient for riders.”
Key highlights of C37 include:
- Double the amount of Amtrak trains between DC & NY, with a 50% increase on the northern half between NY & Boston.
- 60% increase in commuter rail service via MBTA, CTRail, Metro-North, LIRR, NJTRANSIT, SEPTA, MARC, & VRE
- The creation of 900,000 jobs over 15 years
- 2 billion fewer car trips between DC & Boston
- Improved trip times throughout the corridor for both Amtrak & commuter services
- Projects broken into 5/12/15-year cycle.
"On behalf of Amtrak’s onboard service staff, I want to thank the Rail Passengers Association for honoring their hard work with this award. The past couple years have indeed been difficult for Amtrak onboard service staff – coping with furloughs and job insecurity, adapting to changing protocols and services, not to mention the unfortunate events such as a tragic derailment and a fatal shooting. Nevertheless, our dedicated members at Amtrak have handled these hurdles with the care, attention and diligence for which they’re known. We thank Rail Passengers for their acknowledgement of our members’ hard work and, as always, look forward to seeing you on the rails."
Arthur Maratea, TCU/IAM National President
December 21, 2021, on the Association awarding its 2021 Golden Spike Award to the Frontline Amtrak Employees.
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