Amtrak Plans $117 Billion Upgrade in Northeast for U.S.’s Busiest Rail Line
Photo Caption: Amtrak, along with nine states and the federal government have an ambitious plan to upgrade the Northeast Corridor over the next 15 years. Amtrak
Skift Take
Amtrak and its partners are lining up a series of major infrastructure projects along the busy Northeast Corridor for possible infrastructure funds out of Washington. The plan is sprawling but with federal money available — and "Amtrak Joe" in the White House — the sky is seemingly the limit for rail proposals.
The busiest rail line in the U.S., the Northeast corridor, is an apt metaphor for most passenger trains in the U.S.. Built more than a century ago, it is a creaky affair held together by constant fixes, gumption and a little bit of faith that gets the job done for some 800,000 daily trips.
Now, Amtrak, eight states and the District of Columbia, and the federal government under the umbrella of the Northeast Corridor, or NEC, Commission, have a plan— albeit a pricey one at $117 billion — to improve train service from Boston to New York and Washington, D.C. Dubbed Connect NEC 2035, or C35, the plan outlines a coordinated and phased approach to upgrading the entire line to add and speed up trains along the line over the next 15 years.
“Improving the NEC rail system is a vital multi-state effort” Federal Railroad Administration Deputy Administrator Amit Bose, who is also co-chair of the NEC Commission, said of
