The U.S. Department of Transportation redirected high-speed rail funds originally intended for Florida on Monday, announcing $2 billion of grants to 15 states and Amtrak for 22 projects.
Some of the projects will create segments of rail routes on which trains can go at least as fast as the 110 mph definition of “high speed.” Others will go to projects to reduce current delays for trains that run at lower speeds.
“The investments we’re making today will help states across the country create jobs, spur economic development and boost manufacturing in their communities,” Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said in the news release announcing the awards.
Florida Gov. Rick Scott, a Republican, in February rejected $2.4 billion of high-speed rail grant money from the U.S. DOT, sparking an intense competition among other states and Amtrak for the funds.
The money comes from the $10 billion provided for railroads by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, President Obama’s stimulus bill that was enacted in February 2009. About $5.8 billion of that money has already been awarded for rail projects. ARRA allows the money to be spent for inter-city corridor development as well as high-speed rail projects.
The biggest chunk of grant money awarded Monday, $795 million, is designated for Northeast Corridor upgrades. Some of the projects will allow trains to increase their speeds from 135 mph to 160 mph in some sections and other projects are aimed at reducing current delays for trains traveling at lower speeds.
But U.S. House Transportation Committee chairman John Mica, R-Fla., was critical of the DOT awards.
“We need a comprehensive responsible plan for the Northeast Corridor, and Amtrak — our nation’s Soviet-style passenger rail service — is incapable of carrying out a project of this scope and significance,” he said in a statement.
“We need to bring in the private sector to finance, design, build, operate and maintain true high-speed service in the Northeast Corridor if we are going to have any chance of success,” Mica added.
Midwest projects were awarded the second-largest total, at $404 million. They include a segment of 110 mph track between Detroit and Chicago and an upgrade to part of the Chicago-St. Louis track that also will allow speeds of 110 mph.
The DOT also will spend $336 million on “next generation” locomotives and passenger cars for the Midwest and California.
Meanwhile, California will get another $300 million for construction in the middle of the state, which is the beginning of its long-planned train system from San Francisco to Los Angeles, which ultimately is supposed to run as fast as 220 mph.
The high-speed rail projects at 110 mph or more include:
• A 24 mile segment of Northeast Corridor track on which trains can reach speeds of 160 mph.
• Construction of a 1.5 mile third track in Kingston, R.I., to let trains going up to 150 mph to bypass the station without having to reduce their speed.
• A segment of the Detroit-Chicago route allowing 110-mph trains on 220 miles of track between Dearborn and Kalamazoo.
The projects involving trains at speeds lower than 110 mph include:
• Work on replacement of the 100-year- old Susquehanna bridge in Maryland.
• Reducing delays of trains coming in and out of Manhattan
• Adding improvements to rails in Connecticut, Massachusetts, New York and Pennsylvania.
• Design of a new bridge over the Mississippi River at St. Louis.
The grants announced Monday could be the last for a long time. The April budget agreement eliminated such grants entirely for fiscal 2011. Unless there is a significant shift by conservative members of Congress, President Obama is not likely to get much more rail funding unless there is a major political shift in the 2012 elections.
