President Donald Trump’s (R) administration has named a $12 billion Hudson River rail project, commonly referred to as The Gateway Program, as their top infrastructure project, according to a report by McClatchy’s Kansas City Star and the News Tribune.
By John Heinis/Hudson County View
The report is based off a 52-page document obtained by the publication listing the Trump administration’s top 50 infrastructure projects, with the Gateway Program topping the list.
According to the document, the Gateway Program would require $12 billion for “reconstruction of critical, high-risk Northeast Corridor rail infrastructure between Newark and New York City.”
The projected number of jobs associated with the project leaves no secret as to why it would be a top priority: the Gateway Program would create 15,000 direct jobs and 19,000 indirect jobs with an average salary of $73,000 a year, estimates show.
Their official website also indicates the magnitude of the project by listing the number of agencies involved: Amtrak, the U.S. Department of Transportation, the Port Authority, the state of New Jersey/NJ Transit and the state of New York.
One of the main goals of the project is to create a new Hudson River tunnel so the North River tunnel can be repaired after suffering severe damage during Hurricane Sandy.
