NEW YORK (NEWS10) – On Thursday, Governor Kathy Hochul announced $76.4 million in funding for 38 projects to renew and modernize New York’s freight rail infrastructure. The strategic investments in freight rail improvements are essential for maintaining and enhancing market access for manufacturing and agricultural businesses across New York State.
According to officials the Passenger and Freight Rail Assistance Program, administered by the New York State Department of Transportation, supports investments to enhance the safe movement of freight goods. They say those improvements to service reliability will retain and grow manufacturing jobs and supports economic development, especially upstate.
This funding will help provide for track and bridge rehabilitation, capacity expansion, procurement of cleaner rail equipment, and the modernization and expansion of rail infrastructure in freight yards and at seaport facilities. In addition, these 100 percent State-funded grants complement the more than $100 million annually in private infrastructure investments made in New York by the freight rail industry.
The strategic investments in freight rail also serve to support New York’s nation-leading climate goals. Officials said a single freight rail train removes several hundred trucks from our roadways, mitigating congestion and harmful greenhouse gas emissions.
Capital Region to receive – $17.274 million of awarded projects by region:
• Albany Port District Commission – $4.800 million to the rehabilitation of the maritime
shed and rehabilitation of a section of adjacent rail to increase the Port’s cargo handling area
• Albany Port Railroad Corporation – $2.100 million to the replacement of an older switch
locomotive with new equipment that will significantly reduce nitrogen oxide and carbon dioxide
emissions
• Norfolk Southern Railway – $5.000 million to safety and service reliability enhancements,
including the rehabilitation of 15 miles of track along the Voorheesville corridor, grade crossing
resurfacing, the installation of welded rail, and other enhancements
• Pan Am Southern – $767,000 to safety and service reliability enhancements, including the
replacement of a timber bridge deck and installation of new welded rail on the main track over the
Hudson River and repairing the bearings of the bridge over Knickerbocker Road
• Pan Am Southern – $4.607 million to the rehabilitation of an eight-mile section of the Rotterdam
Branch, including the replacement of ties and ballast, and bridge and concrete repairs
Full list of awarded projects by region. Check this out:
