Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg recommended 18 large rail and BRT projects in 11 states to receive $4.45 billion for construction projects in President Biden’s Fiscal Year 2024 Budget Request to Congress. Nine of the projects would receive funding recommendations for the first time. Others on the list are already under construction or far along in the planning process. In addition to recommendations for FY24 funding, FTA has allocated $1.1 billion in FY22 and 23 funding to 31 transit projects across the U.S.

 

“Transit connects people to jobs, schools, loved ones and more,” said Buttigieg. “We’re proud to deliver this funding to expand transit across the country, which will create good-paying construction jobs and provide better options for people to get where they need to go.”

 

The Fiscal Year 2024 Annual Report on Funding Recommendations accompanies President Biden’s FY24 Budget Request. The projects, which require a local funding match, seek funding through the FTA Capital Investment Grants and Expedited Project Delivery Pilot programs. The report allocates $2.85 billion in annual appropriations requested from Congress and $1.6 billion in FY24 funding provided through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.

 

“Transit is a great equalizer for our nation,” said FTA Administrator Nuria Fernandez. “For the men and women who will use these systems, this investment will open doors to opportunities they may otherwise never have had. For the communities where they’ll be built, every dollar we provide will result in five dollars, or even more, of economic growth.”

 

APTA Chair Dorval R. Carter Jr., president, Chicago Transit Authority, and APTA President and CEO Paul P. Skoutelas spoke at the World Congress on High-Speed Rail, organized by the International Union of Railways (UIC), last week in Marrakech March 7-10. The event brought together more than 1,000 practitioners from around the word representing high-speed rail operations to share perspectives on trends and new practices.

 

Carter participated in the “High-Speed Rail as a Tool for Sustainable Mobility” panel. He noted that his home city of Chicago has long served as a railroad center for the American Midwest and will be the hub for high-performance passenger rail operations linking Chicago with St. Louis, Kansas City, Minneapolis and more. His remarks focused on how to embrace sustainability as part of a strategy for successful rail networks.

 

Other topics discussed included how investment in high-speed rail and public transportation enables the public to choose a sound environmental option. The U.S. has multiple corridors with ideal proximity for high-speed rail service. The Northeast Corridor is the lifeblood of the megaregion linking Washington, Baltimore, Philadelphia, New York and Boston. It is one of the most economically prosperous regions in North America, and it likely would not enjoy that standing without the connectivity the Northeast Corridor provides.

 

Corridors ripe for high-speed rail include Los Angeles to San Francisco, Atlanta to Washington, Houston to Dallas, Chicago to St Louis, Portland to Seattle to Vancouver, Miami to Orlando, Los Angeles to Las Vegas.

 

Skoutelas was part of a roundtable discussion, “The Right Environmental Speed.” He began by expressing his appreciation for the strong partnership APTA enjoys with the UIC and expressed gratitude to UIC for sharing success stories with the U.S. as it works to develop its own passenger rail network.

 

His remarks touched on high-performance intercity passenger rail and a federal commitment of $102 billion for investment in the passenger and freight rail network over the next five years, which is aimed at increasing the speed and reliability of the passenger rail network, as well as extending it.

 

Skoutelas also echoed Carter’s sentiment that the U.S. is committed to sustainable practices. Extreme weather incidents occurring at an increasing rate mean transit and rail equipment and facilities must be planned, designed and built to withstand such occurrences.

 

AMTRAK CEO Stephen Gardner spoke throughout the event, and FRA was represented by Barbara Klein Barr, regional chair, and Fred Mottley, HSR program manager, office of railroad safety.

 

Morocco’s high-speed rail system, Al Boraq, began service in 2018 linking Casablanca, the Capital city of Rabat and Tangiers. It was the first service of its kind on the African continent, and part of a national strategy to modernize and become a leader in technology. high-speed rail service will eventually extend to other cities, including Marrakech and Fez.

 

The World Congress on High-Speed Rail is held every two years. The next event, in 2025, is in Beijing.