New Jersey Applies for High-Speed Rail Funding

Press Release

Seeks funding for Portal Bridge project as part of federal government's plan to advance high-speed passenger rail service

Governor Jon S. Corzine today announced that New Jersey completed its application for federal funding for a project to replace and expand Portal Bridge-a nearly 100-year-old span that carries Northeast Corridor train traffic over the Hackensack River just west of Secaucus. The application is through the federal government's program to advance high-speed passenger rail service in the United States.

"We strongly support the federal government's vision to boost passenger rail service in this country," said Governor Corzine. "With its location on the busiest portion of the most active passenger railroad in North America, the Portal Bridge project is vital to providing faster, better rail service for our future."

New Jersey is among several Northeast states that applied for funding through the Federal Railroad Administration's High-Speed Intercity Passenger Rail (HSIPR) program. Through the Coalition of Northeastern Governors (CONEG), the Northeast states worked collaboratively for months to review proposed improvement projects for the Northeast Corridor and its Connectors serving northern New England, Upstate New York and Pennsylvania.

The proposed upgrades will cut trip times between major cities, improve service reliability, extend service to additional communities, and help fulfill President Obama's vision of making high-speed passenger rail an integral part of America's transportation system.

"The benefits of a new Portal Bridge will extend to local and long-distance rail travelers alike," said Transportation Commissioner and NJ TRANSIT Board Chairman Stephen Dilts. "It will increase capacity, improve reliability and reduce delays for the commuters who travel on the Northeast Corridor here in New Jersey and across the region."

"By reducing delays associated with the bridge's operation, the Portal Bridge project will have an immediate impact on thousands of our customers," said NJ TRANSIT Executive Director Richard Sarles. "It will also address a major chokepoint on the Northeast Corridor and provide the expanded capacity needed to realize the full potential of the Mass Transit Tunnel."

In New Jersey, replacement of the Portal Bridge will eliminate a major bottleneck and source of delays on the Northeast Corridor that NJ TRANSIT shares with Amtrak, by providing additional capacity and improving reliability.

Today, nearly 500 NJ TRANSIT and Amtrak trains-including the high-speed Acela service-use the existing two-track swing bridge. The bridge now operates near capacity during peak periods, carrying 23 trains per hour in the peak direction.

With a new, expanded Portal Bridge, all states that have stations located on the Northeast Corridor or its feeder routes will benefit from higher speeds and improved reliability.

NJ TRANSIT is advancing the project in partnership with Amtrak-owner of the existing bridge-the Federal Railroad Administration and the Federal Transit Administration. To date, NJ TRANSIT has completed preliminary engineering and has begun early work on the final design.

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