NEW YORK (AP) - The Latest on members of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee’s tour of the Hudson River tunnel and New York’s Penn Station (all times local):
7:30 p.m.
The chairman of a House transportation committee says he’ll get a new rail tunnel built between New Jersey and New York even if it takes legislative maneuvering.
Oregon Democrat Peter DeFazio is touring the 109-year-old Hudson River tunnel and other New York-area rail infrastructure with members of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.
The $13 billion project to build a new tunnel is mired in a funding dispute between New Jersey, New York and President Donald Trump’s administration. It’s also been waiting more than a year for final environmental approval from the federal government.
DeFazio said Thursday the House could deem the project environmentally approved and proceed.
The delegation’s visit came on the same day Amtrak announced service reductions at Penn Station this summer to accommodate repairs to aging tracks and equipment.
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1:15 p.m.
The increasing challenges posed by the New York area’s aging rail infrastructure are coming into sharp focus as commuters learn about summer schedule disruptions due to track repairs.
The news also comes as a House transportation committee delegation prepares to tour Penn Station and nearby tracks on Thursday and Friday. The tour will include a 109-year-old Hudson River tunnel, the center of a funding dispute.
This year is the second time in three years that the replacement of equipment at the country’s busiest station promises to cause delays during peak periods for thousands of riders.
Two years ago, predictions of a “Summer of Hell” largely went unrealized as disruptions were handled efficiently. This year’s work is less extensive, and no one is predicting the same level of disruption.
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