Washington, D.C. – To make sure New York continues moving forward on developing high speed rail across the state and doesn’t miss out on any available federal funding, U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand is calling on the New York State Department of Transportation (DOT) to appoint a new high speed rail project manager.
U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood has agreed to designate a top staff member to facilitate an agreement between New York State and CSX. But New York’s high speed rail project manager resigned recently and the State has yet to announce any intentions to fill the position, matching the U.S. DOT’s commitment.
“High speed rail is one of my top priorities for New York,” Senator Gillibrand said. “If we’re going to rebuild our economy and create new jobs, we need to connect all of our cities, businesses and workers with high speed rail. And we need the right leadership in our state to help secure federal funding and manage this development. We can’t afford to miss out on any federal dollars or watch other states pass us by.”
In January, New York State received $151 million to build new high speed rail lines across the state. Another $2.5 billion in federal funding expected to be available.