President Joe Biden announced on Nov. 6 a $16.4 billion federal investment in Amtrak’s Northeast Corridor as part of his 2022 infrastructure law.
The investment will provide faster, safer, and more reliable passenger train service while also creating more than 100,000 construction union jobs, the president said in a speech at Amtrak’s maintenance facility in Bear, Delaware.
“I spent a lot of time on the train. So, when I talk about how badly the Northeast Corridor needs upgrades, you don’t need to tell me; I’ve lived it,” President Biden said.
He touted the fact that he traveled with Amtrak back and forth from Wilmington to Washington every day during his 36 years as a senator. He also claimed that he’d traveled more miles on Amtrak than on Air Force 2 as vice president.
“I know what it feels like to be stuck on the tracks when you’re trying to get home to see your family,” he said.
According to President Biden, the line has tunnels and bridges that are more than 100 years old and the aging infrastructure causes thousands of hours of delays on Amtrak each year.
The money will be spent on 25 passenger rail projects on Amtrak’s Northeast Corridor from Boston to Washington. The investment is part of the $66 billion total fund set aside for Amtrak through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the largest investment in passenger rail since Amtrak’s establishment, according to the White House.
The money will be used to upgrade tracks, power systems, signals, stations, and other infrastructure and to advance future projects that will dramatically improve travel times.
The projects include fixing and expanding the Hudson River Tunnel connecting New York and New Jersey and replacing the 150-year-old Baltimore and Potomac Tunnel.
“More trains will go from Baltimore to Washington in under 30 minutes on average on weekdays,” the president said.
“Meanwhile, our MAGA Republican members of Congress are proposing to slash Amtrak’s budget,” he said.
“You can’t make this stuff up. But that’s OK. We’re not going to let them stop the progress we’re making. I promise you that.”
The White House earlier issued a veto threat for House Republicans’ appropriations bill H.R. 4820, which funds the Department of Transportation, the Department of Housing and Urban Development, and related agencies for the 2024 fiscal year, with the stated aim of cutting billions in unnecessary government spending and preventing overreaching regulations.
Republicans argue that these cuts are needed as they oppose the administration’s “request to increase wasteful climate and equity initiatives.”
The White House stated that the president would veto this “extreme” measure because it reduces funding for Amtrak and imposes “draconian cuts” to transportation and infrastructure programs.
If approved, it will reduce Amtrak funding by 64 percent from the amount enacted in 2023.
Amtrak warns the cuts would compel it to drastically reduce or even suspend some of its service.
“If the proposed levels become law, Amtrak will have to radically reduce or suspend service on various routes across the nation,” Amtrak CEO Stephen Gardner said in a statement.
President Biden promoted his Bidenomics and Investing in America programs during his speech.
A new poll shows that President Donald Trump is leading him in nearly every key battleground state.
The poll, conducted by The New York Times and Siena College, found that President Trump is leading by substantial margins in Nevada, Georgia, Arizona, Michigan, and Pennsylvania, while trailing President Biden only marginally in Wisconsin.
An overwhelming majority, between 60 and 70 percent, of voters in each of the six important states told pollsters that the country is heading in the wrong direction. That majority included people of various races, genders, education levels, and income levels.
Another poll by Gallup found that President Biden’s job approval rating among Democrats has dropped by 11 percentage points in the past month to 75 percent, marking the lowest point of his presidency within his own party.
This decline has also lowered the president’s overall approval rating by four points, to 37 percent, according to the poll. Meanwhile, his approval among independent voters has also fallen by four points, to 35 percent.
