Compartmentalized Responsibility Amtrak, at the prompting of the Federal Railroad Administration, is proposing a major restructuring. According to Amtrak’s website: “The preliminary framework would transform key parts of the organization into smaller, more focused...
Newsletter 10/20/25: Gateway Project “Termination and Transit Fiscal Cliff Looms
Our Take on the Gateway Project “Termination”
The Gateway Project, the centerpiece of which is a new rail tunnel beneath the Hudson River between New Jersey and New York City, has been terminated, President Trump said Wednesday at a White House news conference at which he addressed various subjects.
Two weeks ago, when federal funding for the project was merely “frozen,” we urged our members and readers to contact Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy to insist that the funding be un-frozen. This project, which depends on $16 billion in federal funds, is among the most important passenger rail projects in the country, possibly second only to California High Speed Rail. Its postponement or cancellation will harm the American economy and hurt real people.
As Fiscal Cliff Looms, Alliance Event Charts Path for World-Class Transit in Illinois
Trains in Illinois are teetering on the edge of a fiscal cliff.
The General Assembly’s work for the year is set to end on Oct. 30, and transit agencies across the state will impose service cuts—up to 40% starting in mid-2026—if the House fails to act on a bill passed by the Senate in May of 2025, H.B. 3438.
“If we don’t fund this, a million-plus people have to find another way to get to their job, their school, and their doctor,” said Sen. Ram Villivalam, chairman of the Senate Transportation Committee. He spoke at an event in Chicago Oct. 10, organized by the High Speed Rail Alliance, that focused on the Fiscal Cliff and the challenges of building better transit systems in Illinois.
“There is an impact to everyone—whether it’s direct or indirect—and that’s why we have to get this right,” Villivalam said.
Interstate Highway System Transformed America — So Can High-Speed Rail
Communities to Provide $650,000 in Funding for Chicago-Pittsburgh Passenger Proposal
Metro-North to Extend Service to Albany, Competing With Amtrak Service
Dubuque ‘Ride The Rail’ Pushes for Passenger Train to Chicago
Agreement Seeks to Develop Transportation Hub, Passenger Rail Service at Michigan Central Station
Recap of HSRA’s “Averting the Fiscal Cliff” Talk (Streetsblog Chicago)
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