|
 Schumer proposed creation of a non-profit development corporation
that would help raise money to pay for the multibillion-dollar
project and also pushed to expedite repairs to the existing tunnel,
which dates to the early 1900s.
"We are fast approaching a regional transportation Armageddon: the
busiest rail line in the country stranded without a way into New
York," Schumer said at a press conference on Tuesday.
"But the problem goes beyond New York and New Jersey. It is a
federal problem. If the tunnels aren’t built, it will affect our
economy from Maine to Virginia," he said.
Electrical problems in the existing tunnel caused delays that
doubled, tripled or even quadrupled the work commute of tens of
thousands of people in recent weeks.
 In testimony to New Jersey lawmakers on Monday, Stephen Gardner,
Amtrak's vice president for the Northeast corridor, which runs from
Washington through New York to Boston, said train delays will likely
increase until a new tunnel is built and the existing one is
renovated.
Schumer, who estimated the project would cost $25 billion in total,
said the renovation is essential and will require collaboration for
both their planning and funding.
The senator, a Democrat, criticized New Jersey Governor Chris
Christie, a 2016 Republican presidential candidate, for canceling a
similar transportation plan, named Access to the Region's Core
(ARC), in 2010 because of a lack of funding.
[to top of second column] |
"It’s easy for Senator Schumer to make these claims when New York
wasn’t contributing a dime to the ARC project and didn’t step up to
take on any of the cost of the project’s overruns," Nicole Sizemore,
Christie's spokeswoman, said in a statement.
She said Christie and New York Governor Andrew Cuomo want to see
increased federal funding for the new project.
In July, Christie blamed Amtrak, the national rail operator, for the
train delays and called on the Obama administration and Congress to
do more to fix the problems. He said New Jersey pays Amtrak $100
million annually so that NJ Transit trains can use Amtrak tunnels
and rails.
(Reporting by Katie Reilly; Editing by Barbara Goldberg and Steve
Orlofsky)
[© 2015 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.]
Copyright 2015 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
 |
