Rail tunnels between New York and New Jersey blocked by Trump get go-ahead

The tunnel will cost $11.6bn, half of which will be paid by the federal government

Biden (Copyright 2020 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)

A pair of rail tunnels connecting New York City and New Jersey that were stalled under Donald Trump's administration are now back on track to be built.

The tunnels - considered one of the most critical infrastructure projects in the country - were given the all-clear from federal officials on Friday.

The New York Times reported that the $11.6bn price tag for the tunnels may come from the upcoming infrastructure bill being debated in Congress.

Steven M Cohen, the co-chairman of the Gateway Program Development Corporation, which is overseeing the project, praised the move.

“We’re now where we should have been four years ago,” he said. “All of this has been in suspended animation for four years for no reason other than politics and games.”

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg also acknowledged the importance of the project.

“This is a big step for the Northeast, and for the entire country, as these tunnels connect so many people, jobs and businesses,” he said in a statement.

The tunnels will run under the Hudson River, and will supplement the existing single-track tunnels that have serviced the region for more than 110 years.

The existing tunnels were severely damaged during Hurricane Sandy in 2012.

Since then, transportation officials in New York have expressed their concerns that the tunnels will continue to deteriorate. Making matters worse, salt left over from flooding in the tunnels is corroding interior walls and electrical cables, which sometimes results in shutdowns for repairs.

Prior to the pandemic, the existing tunnels serviced 450 trains that moved around 200,000 passengers every week.

Most of the passengers are commuters, but the tunnels also service Amtrak trains that bring travellers from other cities into New York City.

Amtrak officials said that new tunnels would be necessary before full repairs can be made to the existing tunnels. Approximately $1.8bn of the proposed $11.6bn for the tunnel project is marked for repairs on the existing tunnel.

Projections suggest the new tunnels will be finished in eight years, but planners hope they can complete the project before the end of the decade.

The project was launched under the Barack Obama administration, with the federal government footing half the bill and New York and New Jersey covering the other half.

Cost-share agreements between the federal government and state or local governments is common on major projects like the tunnel construction.

However, the project was stalled under the Trump administration.

The Biden administration reversed the federal government's position in February.