Tuesday, July 02, 2002 (Washington, DC) U.S. Transportation Secretary Norman Y. Mineta and Federal Railroad Administrator Allan Rutter today announced the award of a grant totaling $76,748,000 to Amtrak, the National Railroad Passenger Corporation, to fund improvements to the Amtrak-owned New York City tunnels.

“Securing critical transportation infrastructure is one of President Bush’s highest priorities,” Secretary Mineta said. “These funds will aid Amtrak in safeguarding their passengers and provide travelers in the greater New York area a significantly enhanced level of safety and security.”

New York Gov. George Pataki added, “This funding is an essential step in addressing the pressing fire and life-safety issues in the aging tunnels leading to and from Penn Station. I want to commend Secretary Mineta for recognizing the federal commitment to this issue and for providing funding to enhance the safety and security of these densely traveled tunnels. Although these tunnels are owned by Amtrak, over 300,000 New York and New Jersey commuters use them each day. The federal funds being released today will augment the investment New York has been making to the East River tunnels and I look forward to working with the Secretary to ensure that the federal commitment to these tunnels remains robust.”

The grant funds will be used to cover the costs of fire and life safety improvements including: structural rehabilitation; installation of modernized tunnel ventilation and communication systems; and improvements for emergency access and egress. The grant agreement provides for reimbursement to Amtrak of actual costs incurred in making the improvements.

“These enhancements will help ensure the reliability and integrity of these crucial rail gateways to and from the greater New York City area,” said Administrator Rutter. “I’m pleased that FRA is able to help Amtrak in achieving these significant safety improvements.”

Funding for the grant was authorized through a $100 million appropriation contained in the FY 2002 Department of Defense and Emergency Supplemental Appropriations for Recovery From and Response to Terrorist Acts on the United States Act. The amount of the grant covers Amtrak's planned capital expenditures on the New York tunnels during the current fiscal year. The remaining $23.25 million will be made available to Amtrak for its tunnel improvement program in FY 2003 through an amendment to the grant agreement announced today.