In the United States, thousands of infrastructures are in need of repair and modernization, notably the railway network. In New York, the rail tunnel that connects the city to New Jersey under the Hudson River is in very poor condition, but it should be renovated thanks to Joe Biden’s investment plan. The president has pledged sixteen billion dollars for a project called the Gateway Project.
Published on: 13/11/2023 – 12:57
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From our correspondent in New York,
The tunnel that connects Manhattan’s Penn Station to New Jersey and the rest of the East Coast sees 450 trains passing through each day with 200,000 passengers on board. But for several years, problems have been accumulating, causing very significant delays.
Decades of underfunding
Power outage, water infiltration, frozen installations in winter, broken signaling. There were even several derailments. And the tunnel was very, very damaged by Superstorm Sandy in 2012.
The objective of Joe Biden’s plan is therefore to renovate this work. It’s a multi-step plan. It is indeed a question of renovating it to deal with the most urgent. But the goal of the long-term plan is to build a new rail tunnel, also upgrade the rails and infrastructure at Penn Station in Manhattan and even build a new bridge connecting New York to New Jersey to improve traffic. between the two.
A project with strong economic repercussions
With the investment announced by Joe Biden, they hope to be able to complete the entire project by 2038. An important project for the current president because it is not just about passenger transport: “ This tunnel is almost 150 years old! It’s a miracle he’s still standing. The structure is badly damaged, there are leaks, the floor is sinking. We are the United States of America for God’s sake! We must do better! If this line is out of service for just one day, it would cost the country more than $100 million. ».
When train traffic is interrupted due to repeated breakdowns, it costs a lot of money, as this tunnel is also used for freight and is part of a key rail network, the “North East Corridor”. If there is a problem, the entire Boston-Washington axis is affected. An area which concentrates 20% of the country’s economic activity.
Also listen Biden Plan: “The American economy cannot function without bridges and roads”
2023-11-13 11:57:14
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