Menendez Highlights Gateway, Transit Equity as Major Wins of Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill

Press Release

During a Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee Hearing yesterday, U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) highlighted the massive step the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) takes to rebuilding the nation's infrastructure. The Senator underscored how the bill will ensure the critical Gateway Project is completed and that greater equitable access to transit is delivered to communities across New Jersey and the country.

"As my colleagues here have heard me say many times over the years, the Gateway Program to modernize our century-old infrastructure between New Jersey and New York that is utilized by both NJ Transit and Amtrak's Northeast Corridor is absolutely vital to the future of my state, the NEC, and our national economy -- and I say national economy because that region generates 20 percent of GDP for the entire nation," said Sen. Menendez, who is a senior member of the committee and a leading champion of the Gateway Project in Congress

The Senator went on to highlight the importance of the Capital Investment Grants (CIG) Program, which the Gateway Project is now eligible to move forward under after the Biden Administration gave the project an improved rating. The IIJA increased the authorization for the CIG Program by 50 percent and the FY22 funding bill that passed last week included an additional $400 million for the program.

Sen. Menendez also lauded how the IIJA will increase access to transit options in communities across the nation.

"As a former mayor, I've seen firsthand the transformative impact that access to well-planned transit can have on communities. I have long worked to provide additional resources to strengthen the linkage between affordable housing and access to transit," the Senator said. "I'm pleased that some progress was made on that front in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, providing greater focus on transportation planning activities, including, what I call livable communities, or an emphasis on housing planning and affordable housing in the planning process for transit projects."

Sen. Menendez has long advocated for greater planning between affordable housing and transit access. In 2012, he secured a $10 million Transit-Oriented Development pilot program, which was reauthorized in the IIJA. He is also the prime sponsor of the Livable Communities Act, which would create a federal grant program to incentivize the coordinated development of affordable housing and transit.

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