| Issue 314 | April 23, 2001 |
Representatives
Jerrold Nadler of NYC and Christopher
Shays of western Connecticut are leading the charge to insert a $15
million earmark for the environmental impact study of the proposed Cross-Harbor
freight rail tunnel. The major investment study for the project found
it could remove up to 1 million trucks per year from crowded regional highways
and roads by allowing rail freight to move more cheaply and directly to
and from U.S. and Canadian rail lines to New York City, Long Island and
southern New England.
In early April, the NYC Economic Development Corp. announced the selection of consultants for the study, projected to cost $20 million. The companies and subcontractors chosen - STV Inc., Cambridge Systematics, Allee King Rosen Fleming and Hatch Mott MacDonald - have prepared designs for the Long Island Railroad's East Side Access Project and the English Channel Tunnel. The Federal Railroad Administration and the Federal Highway Administration will be the lead agencies in the study. Once funding is secure, the study is expected to be completed within two years.
Congressman Nadler, a long-time freight tunnel advocate, told the Daily News it was essential to complete the tunnel's environmental review study before the omnibus federal transportation reauthorization in 2003 so that the project is in line for significant federal construction funding. He pledged to meet with the congressional delegations of metro region and southern New England states and said support was growing rapidly for the project. Winning the needed funding for the study should be a top priority in budget negotiations this year for all members of the New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut delegations in particular.
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