President Joe Biden made his first visit of the year 2023 to New York yesterday, this time to promote infrastructure improvements, presenting in particular new financing for the construction of a railway tunnel between Manhattan (NY) and neighboring New Jersey.
“This is just the beginning of finally building a 21st century rail system,” proclaimed Biden, who at the start of his administration in 2021 pushed through the bipartisan infrastructure bill, a huge federal investment project that is one of his great legislative achievements.
The 4½-mile Hudson Tunnel Project between Penn Station (NYC) and Secaucus Station in New Jersey has been delayed for years by funding issues and political infighting and is estimated to cost an estimated $16 billion in total. .
Biden announced a new federal contribution of $292 million dollars for this project, which includes the rehabilitation of a tunnel inaugurated in 1910 and the start of construction of another to improve the connection between the two urban banks of the Hudson River, which cross each day tens of thousands of workers between the states of New York and New Jersey.
In his speech at Hudson Yards (Manhattan), Biden once again insisted on his commitment to American industry and manufacturing and highlighted the vital role of the middle class and unions, anticipating what may be the central axis of his campaign to re-election in 2024, which is expected to be officially launched in the coming weeks.
The money announced yesterday in New York comes from an initiative to finance large projects through which some $1.2 billion dollars have already been disbursed and the construction of this tunnel is also part of a broader plan to modernize the important railway corridor Northeastern US
The president is touting the fruits of his infrastructure bill “at a time when Republicans are seeking budget cuts, especially in areas like Social Security and healthcare,” he said. EFE.
In addition to New York, Biden visited another infrastructure project in Baltimore, Maryland on Monday and plans to also travel to Philadelphia in the coming days.
Another of the great connections between New York and New Jersey, the Holland Tunnel, one of the busiest automotive tunnels in the world, has been under repair for years. This Sunday will begin a new phase in the works that will now imply the closure for 6 nights a week until 2025 in the NY-NJ direction, announced the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey (PANYNJ).