New England states coordinate rail plans

Vermont Agency of Transportation Secretary David Dill on Thursday, November 12 joined transportation administrators from the six New England states in to advance the goal of regional cooperation and coordination to achieve the mutual goal of enhancing “mobility options” for the people of the Northeast. All six New England states have submitted Stimulus grant applications under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) for high-speed or intercity commuter rail funding. On Thursday, the administrators expressed cautious optimism about their chances of success with these applications, while recognizing the extremely competitive nature of the program.
The meeting, which was held in Connecticut, was a follow-up to a meeting of the Northeast Association of State Transportation Officials (NASTO) in Boston where a “vision” for the region covering high-speed and intercity passenger rail, as well as freight rail, was developed and ultimately unveiled in August.
Secretary Dill updated his New England counterparts on Vermont’s submission of Economic Stimulus grant requests for Amtrak’s Vermonter and Ethan Allen Express service routes. The grants would allow for increased track speeds, reduced travel times, improvement of time performance and expanding the Ethan Allen’s Western Corridor service to Burlington. An application with New York State will examine potential passenger service options between Southwestern Vermont and the New York Capitol District area. The Agency’s Stimulus application for freight rail improvement projects includes upgrades to facilitate the 286,000 weight standards and ensure the continued viability of freight lines as “through routes” connecting Vermont to the rest of New England and Canada.
Dill also noted, “In this era of economic constraint, it is imperative that State DOTs work collaboratively to ensure that we focus our resources in the planning and delivery of transportation systems and services region wide. The opportunity to enhance and expand passenger and freight rail, which are truly interstate in nature, through this regional effort provides Vermont with a significant opportunity to leverage State and Federal transportation funds in a new way, thereby providing a higher return to our taxpayers.”
“We are committed to advancing our strategy and our collective initiatives across all modes of transportation for New England,” said Connecticut Department of Transportation Commissioner Joseph F. Marie. “We have unanimity that an existing framework for our continued cooperation exists within the Coalition of New England Governors (CONEG). We will meet quarterly as a group to advance our passenger and freight rail, and other transportation objectives.”
Maine Transportation Commissioner David Cole will host the next meeting of the commissioners in February in Portland.
The administrators also pledged to continue their work and dialogue with all members of the New England congressional delegations to secure passage of a federal transportation funding bill for the entire country.
Source: VTrans.