@@millevenon5853 Like the 40 billion to Ukraine without blinking an eye as we've piddled around with this project for 10 billion less now for 11 years? OK. I get it.
@@1940limited rather is get done than not. in the grand scheme of things, this isn't actually all that expensive. Its nothing compared to the American Rescue Plan.
The defense budget is nothing when you compare it to how much we spend on cars and other related expenses. The average American spends $9,282 a year on cars. Multiply that by the total 276 million registered vehicles and you get over $2.56 trillion spent every year. If we spent that same amount of money on public transit and high speed rail, we would have the best system in the world no doubt. We could also invest some to design faster trains.
Whats scary is, trust me. This project will take 20, 30, 40 years to be completed. Thats the American standard for finishing a job and by the time it is completed, the cost would probably went up by like 5 fold or sonething like that.
This is what our tax money should be going towards not making the reps in Congress richer when they don’t realize this project even though it’s just a giant makeover is key to modernizing our train system and what is going to happen when the hyperloop comes into play I think it would be intresting to have a channel on RUclips that would give us video updates on the progress of these projects and maybe give us some history on these old tunnels and in the future these things should be left up to the people and not left to Congress just to be stepped over because they want a bigger paycheck.
Is the railway publicly owned? If not, why should the tax payer fund this? Let the private rail companies seek the investment and pay for it using ticket sales. Rail users should pay for the railways. road users should pay for the roads etc.
@@R.-. Because it's critical infrastructure? Last I checked, the economy runs off people, which is what this railway moves. Plus, the fewer people on the roads the better, unless you like traffic jams.
@@R.-. also FWIW, road users have rarely paid for the roads they use. Yes they pay for much of the interstates, but local roads are funded by revenues not directly tied to road use.
@@R.-. The problem with with funding it entirely through ticket sales is that the train riders aren't the only ones to benefit, yet, are the only ones who will be funding it. It increases property values and generates a large amount of money into the New York City economy. With only funding through ticket sales, the price per ticket will be pretty high which will discourage ridership and won't give as many benefits as a publicly-funded project would give.
These projects/repairs/upgrades should have been in place WAY before Sandy. IF we happen to get a change in presidents I'm betting the project will be put on the back burner AGAIN. NYC tunnels overall need repair. And a good amount of new ones built. When the population grows the infrastructure within has to grow and be upgraded to handle the growth! Other countries have no problem getting infrastructure done if need be!
Trump froze federal money because $billions had dropped down the rabbit hole and no one could account for it. Curious that they simply waited until he was gone and are once again dumping in the cash.
Much of this can be laid at the feet of Robert Moses who concentrated his efforts on highway systems and keeping NYC segregated - the policies of the 40's and 50's laid the groundwork for urban flight and thus the decay of many parts of the city. The transport system has not been upgraded in almost 100 years. The Long Island Railroad only goes East/West and it takes hours to move north south between Brooklyn and Queens. It is mainly a question of neglect both in terms of not upgrading what was built but constantly adding to it over time. Show me an American city that has excellent public transport as well as good highways and roads and a A+ for city planning? Anyone?
And the fact that tax-cuts for the profitable companies and the rich who don't pay their fair share of taxes to support the infrastructure they use and need to be profitable and rich.
True, reading the power broker you learn of all the missed opportunities nyc unfortunately suffered. Robert Moses didn’t want any type of public transportation in his works. Now we can only look into the future, and try to catch up and make up for the lost time.
Except NY has neglected its subway even after Robert Moses. Also, the Public housing people were pushed into at the time actually had good facilities. Moses was arguably improving the city at the time by improving the quality of housing. Also, Moses tried to build highways everywhere, not just poor areas. It’s just that in the rich areas that public opposition stopped him.
The cost of major infrastructure projects in the US never fails to boggle my mind. A stretch of just over 10 miles costing nearly $30 billion is insane. For comparison, the currently longest railway tunnel in the world was completed 5 years ago in Switzerland - not exactly a country known for its cheap labor and shabby construction standards - for a total cost of $12 billion. That project, the Gotthard Base Tunnel, is just about the most complex 35 miles long stretch of railroad ever built, which at the center sits beneith 8000 ft of solid rock. I just can't see how the Gateway Project should cost nearly 10 times as much per mile...
Do you think that tunnel in Switzerland would have cost the same if 10 million people lived on and around where it was being constructed? You can’t compare cost per mile in the middle of nowhere in Switzerland to one of the most densest, most expensive cities in the world 1 to 1 like that. True, 29 billion is a lot of money, but it’s worth it. A lot has to be done to make sure everyone’s lives can continue while this work is being done, and that is very expensive.
These numbers are small in 2022 dollars for an economy so massive as US. This project is needed and good but Japanese style fast trains are needed from Phillt to NYC to Boston with a Montreal branch with stops in Albany and an eventual Buffalo branch. A new Netro North would help lower NYC rents and spur upstate economic expansion
If we as a nation added up the wasted money and time spent by the Trump administration screwing up virtually everything they touched we would be far ahead with a new infrastructure plan. In place of working on bridges and tunnels his desire was to build a Mexican Wall. God, there are many stupid people in the USA. Especially those that supported and still support Trump.
I am a regular Washington-New Haven commuter. This is a very exiting development. When I ride Amtrak, I am always envious of the European countries where significant rail investments have been made and rail is even faster and more convenient. That said, I find Amtrak a much preferred option to driving or flying. And it will be even better with these investments.
You left out that fact the project was canceled not once but twice. Prior to it being down graded by the Donald Trump Administration it was canceled by New Jersey Governor Chris Christie because of its over priced cost. The Gateway Program previously know as the Gateway Project is solution to a different problem. It add no increase in capacity for Amtrak, it simple allows New Jersey Transit a separate path into New York Penn Station. A better solution should have been placing the two new tunnels, one up stream and the other down stream of the existing North River Tunnels. That configuration would have doubled the capacity for both Amtrak and New Jersey Transit. From what I understand the planning engineers did not want to devise a engineering solution to a problem that builders of the North River Tunnels discovered over a hundred years ago after those tunnels were built.
New York is losing people popular, while rat population is on the rise. Mega City are unmanageable. Suburbs are more conducive to a quality life. Unless you own a rat Terrior, and go rat hunting.
Christy nevver supported the project even with the Obama admin kicking in federal funds to cover 50% of the cost. Hard to believe with the importance of the NY metro area to the economic healh of the country. Trump focused his personal animosity towards the NY legal system as his motivation to cancel the project.
@@richardkrochmal6028 Christy canceled it when the price tag jumped from $8 bn to 12 and then to $16 bn in 3 years with no design in place. It is a utterly corrupted effort.
@@jamesb4789 Christy's heart was never in the right place for the project to advance. You mention that costs that were involved and no final design in place. I agree with you. Bring in the unions without strict oversight and you have exactly what happened a cancelled project. Sometimes, it's worth while to remember that New York's GDP was approximately $1.5 trillion in 2021. Almost as much as Russia's ($1.75 trillion 2021). Try to imagine the loss of life and economic harm that would have befallen the country had the existing tunnel collapsed. At times it seems that we have allowed our demons to take over our common sense. I have no love for Christy. Yet, he was voted in by the residents of NJ. Had he more imagination and the political will to crack the whip the project could, as it should have, progressed during his administration.
Ok.. anyone who thinks this will get done at under $30B has lost their minds. New York City voted in 2004 to add another subway line. They didn't start breaking ground on that until 2012 and didn't finish phase 1 until New Year's 2017. It went 3x over budget. Mind you they still have another 4 phases to complete.
I commute into and out of NYC ever day. This is a pointless project. The city is dying due to horrendous leadership and a handicapped police force. This is a complete waste of money we don’t have. Also one World Trade Center. 1.5 bil budget. 3.8 bil total cost.
@@JM-ks3ir this is a laughable comment that I've seen people make almost every year of my life. NYC has been America's largest, and most economically important city for almost our entire history. And the police force wouldn't have been "Handicapped" if the corrupt fuckers could've just behaved like public servants. PBA cards are a indication of their overall behavior, they refuse to police themselves.
Major projects in a place like NYC are very costly. The city is old and congested not just with people, but with other infrastructure. Those tunnels probably contain miles of cable and pipes unrelated to the railroad itself. When these projects are done, they also have to mitigate disrupting the existing services as they are being upgraded and/or replaced. The city can't just stop while these projects are underway. A good example - Boston's Big Dig. Took a decade, but they burrowed under a nearly 400 year old city having to move thousands of miles of cable, pipes and conduit touching everything from sewer lines, electricity, internet and phone cables, steam pipes, subway lines, water pipes etc., as well as tunneling underneath existing rail lines and the Boston harbor - all without disrupting services. Despite the cost overruns that always made the news - they did an incredible job of not disrupting services over that decade of construction.
The PRR built the original tunnels in only 6 years and that was back at the very beginning of the 20th century with less sophisticated construction equipment and techniques. A new set of tunnels today shouldn't take very long to build. I'm sure it won't be too long.
30 billion for this after years of debate, but they sent 40 billion to Ukraine with the snap of a finger... There are likely more places in need of construction in the U.S still.
The government should BOTH fund this project and assist Ukraine. It's unfortunate that this obviously extremely important project is being debated at all, but there's no reason to disparage the also vital foreign aide to ukraine
@Nicholas Time funding coups? Elaborate pls. You're saying the revolution was paid for by the US? On what evidence? What was the money used for? You conspiracy theorists think any time there's a pro-western revolution, it MUST be because the CIA is involved. It couldn't possibly be the Ukranian people didn't want to be a puppet state for the poor shithole that is Russia
That’s very likely part of it, but Chuck Schumer too, along with being a retaliatory act for lack of support for his border wall. But, repeat the slogan ‘America First’ enough times and people will actually believe it if they really want to…
Had the Pennsylvania Railroad still existed to this very day those new tunnels would have been built years ago already. The PRR was a very wealthy railroad back in its heyday. After all there's a reason why it was known as "the standard railroad of the world".
The Pennsylvania Railroad began losing money back in 1947. That's why they sold the air rights of Pennsylvania Station to the developers of Madison Square Garden in 1962. That beautiful architectural gem was torn down to make way for the 4th Madison Square Garden. That still didn't save the PRR; they merged with rival railroads New York Central and New Haven and Hartford to form Penn Central in 1968. They filed for bankruptcy in 1970.
Isn't there talk of all kinds of MTA expansions? I say just do all of them. The MTA has so many overdue expansions that are contributing to the overcrowding and delays
The cost is an investment - the fact we are using these structures over 100 years later means this project's 'real' cost is actually 1% of that plus maintenance - around 295m/yr which is a true drop in the ocean for such a massive area (i mean that's what, $1000 per year per commuter or $1.30 per person per trip just for the locals, and that's not even counting all the long distance travellers or new customers)
I used to commute into Manhattan from the Summit area (Morristown line). I would never do it again, and regret all those hours I wasted stranded on one side or the other. Never! It's awful, outdated, and embarrassing.
Boston's project was a mess, road infrastructure like that is wildly inefficient and only encourages congestion further. "Lipstick on a pig" comes to mind.
They have a hard time securing $30 billion for critical national infrastructure, but we have billions to send to Ukraine in addition to a whole bunch of other countries who don't contribute anything to pool of tax dollars needed to keep this country running.
There's always money for war or the rich. The same people that bitch about socialism get government handouts with no strings attached and no questions. If a poor person NEEDS a dollar they make them jump through hoop after hoop and call him a lazy POS. The rich now own 60% of the wealth up from 40% in 1980 they have to have everything and they wanna make sure no one else has anything. Something has to change.
Ukraine foreign aide is vital for not only the security of the western world, as in, stopping a dictator from bombing and invading a country for wanting to align with us, but it's also vital to secure LNG, oil, shipping lanes from black sea, wheat supplies, and Neon supplies (this one is particularly important). In addition, adding 40m more people to the western alliance and all of their infrastructure and resources, will pay back the costs of support in time. That being said, this project should ALSO be high priority. Theres no reason to specifically target Ukrainian foreign aide, as if the government can only do one of the other. Trump canceled federal funding for the program long before the current Ukraine war
The whole reason for foreign "aid" is not to help foreign countries, but to provide a steady stream of money for top government officials in this country. If $100 million is given to a foreign country, we require that about 1/3 of it be wired into bank accounts that are controlled by top officials in this country. Another 1/3 is taken by top officials of the country that received the money.
@@georgewolfiii1170 This may surprise you, but there are these things called 'reputable sources'. They're really cool and something tells me you haven't looked at one in a while.
I live on the Raritan Valley line - a station that has never had one seat transit into NY. Instead we have had switches in Newark and endless delays. This was supposed to have resolved by 2016. Now I will be retired by the time this is done
Trains themselves are cool. But it is far from cool to share a train with homeless, addicts, rapist and muggers, and other undesirables. The only places in USA where anyone would want to ride a train are the nice, safe areas where trains aren't even needed.
Snarky comment from someone who forgets that the USA industrialized itself over 150 years ago back when most nation's infrastructure was in the Stone Age.
You should have started with, then Governor, Chris Christie's cancellation of the ARC (Access to the Region's Core) project in 2010. That was the original plan to build two new tunnels under the Hudson to take the load off of the original North River Tunnels dug by the PRR.
29.5BN to get it started and finish 5% of the project, and request for more funding to move the project forward infinitely many more times to get more money. Check out what's happening to the railway project in Hawaii that started decades ago. Still not finished.
New Jersey actually would not be cut off from Manhattan because they still would have the PATH train to 33rd Street. Which is around the corner from Penn Station.
What if what happened with California's high speed rail project also happens here? I know its very different but NY already took a decade longer than it was said to build East Side Access and 3 times the projected cost just to build a few miles of new tunnels with most of the work already done for them
It will happen. But that should be a given now. Every project has cost overruns and it’s been that way for centuries now. People keep acting like this is something new. I’ve just started adding 5 extra years and triple the budget to any project now.
A lot of HSR's cost overruns are due to land easements and legal disputes in the central valley, which wouldn't be a problem. Here. It's not NEW train lines, it's widening and improving existing train routes
Don't forget the 2nd Ave Subway debacle. The 2nd Ave subway proposal was drawn up in 1925. 50 years later, they completed 1 mile of tunnel, then it was stopped. IT didn't start up again until almost 40 years after that. Now at the cost of billions upon billions, THREE ,count 'em THREE new stations and almost two miles of tunnel are finally in operation. What the taxpayers of NYC NYS and the USA received after all that money and time was spent is equivalent to spending a half million dollars on a toothbrush and waiting a hundred years to actually get it and then only getting one quarter of it!
Up here in Boston we faced the same thing with the Big Dig. $2B project ended up costing $16B and with interest balloons to $22B. However, when you see how much Boston benefit from the Interstate going underground and more efficient, Boston will make many times that back, if it hasn't done so already. There are entire areas of Boston developed to the 9s that was waste land before. But, MA also learned it's lesson from the corruption and overruns. When it came time to wide a critical highway, Rte 3 from NH to Burlington, they crafted a contract that made a ton of sense. The contractor that won the bid would get paid for the cost to build AND to maintain the project over a number of decades. MA would also negotiate to add to any unforeseen overruns. The money to maintain would be lucrative for the company, but also would not be extended. If the contractor did quality work that stood the rest of time, they pocket the money they don't need to use. If not, it's on their dime. The project also had a deadline the contractor would pay penalties on if not done on time. The project was done on time, mostly on budget and without any issues over the first 17 years of the project's completion. Obviously widening a highway is tiny compared to the Gateway Project, but most of the principles would work, of applied by experts. Of course, the fact Amtrak had no master plan upon the project being greenlighted is highly alarming....
@@derbagger22 Big Dig was a massive mistake. Traffic should've been routed around boston, not underground. City center tunnels being used for car traffic is just wasteful.
Normally in the NYC region, the increased costs are attributed to higher union wages for all trades plus guaranteeing little to no interruption to ongoing train service. And in the case of those bridges, it would also include no interruption to shipping route service.
@@KillaninjaFC I find it a bit hard to believe that's the cause. Minimum wage in Australia is similar to NYC when you convert the dollar. Median wages are much much higher. It's generally regarded as one of the most expensive places to build stuff but doesn't even come close to NYC. They're not long bridges and it's not difficult terrain. They're not that tall either. You build them and at the last stage you relay the track on the new route. That price is just stupid.
@@KillaninjaFC That is irrelevant in the bridge case. It is not hard to do that and minimize the barge traffic. It is not a ship route, but barge. The existing rotating bridge does not open far enough for ocean going vessels and the channel is fairly shallow. the central arch design would easily be built in place with minimal issue shipping wise.
the only downside to this project is that they have to dismantle the old Portal Brige but I seen no one care, so I'll guess it's a small sacrifice to drastically upgrade NYC transport
I'm all for the Gateway Project however like all massive infrastructure constructions, the cost will balloon to more than double, the completion timeframe will balloon to more than double, and plenty of politicians and contractors will retire off the graft that goes hand-in-hand with massive infrastructure constructions. Somebody please tell me how much over-budget and over-time has been the East Side Access project.
I understand your worries, but the alternative is no Gateway project - letting the already deteriorating tunnels collapse, displacing thousands of jobs, etc.
@@RoyWiggins In the world to come, when Jesus and his people rule the Earth (instead of Satan and his people), there will be no money, no graft, no greed, no cheating to get ahead, and no graft or corruption. That world will begin in late 2035, after the very last of the devil-worshippers have been removed from the Earth, and God's people can takeover.
@Nicholas Time Staten Island is an untapped area that people resist moving to because of wonky transportation. Both a subway line from Brooklyn and the PATH from Grove Street should be extended into Shaolin.
@@doctorstrangelove9487 you're also not thinking about possibilities that this could do for passenger rail. Faster commutes for both Amtrak and NJT with eliminating delays, brand new lines from NJT, wayy more frequent service, and all the climate benefits too with removing cars.
there should be a subway tunnel connecting Staten island to the rest of train lines in nyc . tired of the slow boat ride & expensive toll & traffic on the v bridge .
well, there is an abandoned subway tunnel connecting SI to Brooklyn because it WAS supposed to happen...but it was canceled in 1925. When the Access to the Region's Core project was originally canceled in 2010, fed. funds allocated for it could've went to the tunnel as one of the many alternatives.
I agree. I live in Queens and to get to SI, I'd have to drive through all of that Brooklyn traffic only to then face the Verrezano traffic, and pay a $17 toll to boot. A subway line could allow residents in Queens, Brooklyn, and the Bronx to have an affordable way to get to Staten Island. I myself would never drive to SI if I could just take the train.
This project would not have been possible without Moynihan Station and Grand Central Madison being completed. Now the Penn rehab and new tunnels can start!
At 5:29 you show a blue line indicating a future high speed rail network. At Newark, NJ it goes Northwest and does not follow the existing NE Corridor line. Is that a plan is is it just a random doodle?
It looks pretty similar to a high speed rail path I saw proposed a couple years back when I lived in CT. They've revised the path many times so whatever is shown would only be a temporary rough estimate anyway. As far as I'm aware it's only gotten as far as an idea, and is already being fought hard by the NIMBY types around each proposed path.
The route between DC and NYC Penn station was laid out in the 1962 bullet train proposal put together by the PRR. Gateway is based on that proposal and in fact they cheated and used the original design with upgrades. In 2008 it was a simple purely functional design adn then the politicians grabbed it and the costs ballooned. Did you know the original Japanese bullet trains were based on the Untied Technologies design for a bullet train for the PRR. The japanese bought the design when the PRR sidelined the project. Sixty years later we are starting to build the first segment of the HS route.
This is a good summary, but it's a pretty irresponsible that you failed to mention Chris Christie's cancellation of this project in 2010, when it would have cost ~$8.7 billion at the time.
It was always 30 billion, everyone knew that behind closed doors. That's why he cancelled it because he knew the actual cost was going to be over the estimated 8 $billion
@@moosesandmeese969 you know this how? This is the sane Chris Christie that appointed Cory Booker, a Democrat to a vacant Senate seat. I'm sure the fact NJ taxpayers would have been on the hook for the overage had nothing to do with it.
@@moosesandmeese969 You should at least go back and read the headlines from the time. The project was originally $8 bn then jumped to 12 then to 16 in less than three years and the project managers had no done the design nor did they have any real basis to cap the costs. Christy cancelled a corrupt money pit.
Its great that they intend to have north Jersey railway lines loop into the city, but the Bergen Line is still a single track! It needs to be dueled and ideally replaced by a light rail system.
Hey. I notice on your map a line in red going north from Penn Station in the city. Could you explain what this is please and if it is a possible further extension connecting to grand central? All the best. Mathew.
I think it was a mistake. There's no existing line in that location. I believe it was meant to be the West Side Line, which runs up the Hudson River and serves trains that run to points north via Albany. It doesn't actually run in the location shown, but instead trains exit Penn heading back West and then turn North.
That would connect the Harlem metro north line to Penn. Wow that would be convenient. Right now you have to get out of NJ transit, take a subway crosstown to Grand Central but another ticket and catch a different train up north. It runs down Lexington in the city then branches off to all points north after 125th street. There's another metro north train that runs up the Hudson river and I don't think it goes as far east but it still starts out in Grand Central.
For all of Christie's faults, I was glad he put the kabosh on the stupid NJ Transit proposal to build a stub end six track terminal beneath New York's Penn Station. It made no sense. A project alainged with AMTRAK, NJ Transit and the LI Railroad is critical for the overall success of regional mobility. Nice to see the groundbreaking pictured for the Portal Bridges. Signs of hope. BTW, the Northeast Corridor now extents to Richmond, Newport News, Roanoke and Lynchburg
Um... any particular reason there's blink-and-you'll-miss-it footage of Russian passenger trains at 5:09 into this video? The 'pnd' on the side of the train is the giveaway... just curious, not insinuating anything... :-)
improving public transportation does improve people's lives financially. And we are talking about a project that if ignored will cripple the entire NEC.
Once the new tunnels are built, the existing North River Tunnels need to be shut down and rebuilt. Without that, you’ve only modernized the status quo. You need four tracks under the Hudson to match the four tracks under the East River if you ever want to increase capacity.
That's essentially the plan. We won't see significant capacity increases until years after the new tunnels open as the old ones are going to be totally overhauled.
and Metro North - as it is - I must say it is both a very well integrated system as well as having good fares (for the subway, bus, and ferries, that is).
NYC is so important that Trump should have spent money to add several 100 miles of metro rail and built and repaired the dozen other bridges and or tunnels needed to give the city a far better circulation of traffic and turn a city once undisputed as the greatest mega city (many have passed it) back into the greatest city on earth!!!
Trump said he is a great business man but didnt give NYC Metripolitan money? Would have increased his property value and large infrastructure project are as well connected to politicians.
@@salakasto I got a guy much better than Cuomo in mind. He held 12 different unelected positions in government and literally drafted the modern city charter.
@@Neuzahnstein And get caught stealing from the cookie jar? Trump realized he had more to offer than just building big structures and he didn't want the first billionaire politician to be labeled as corrupt.
Building bridges and tunnels for NYC and NJ is their job, not the Federal govt's job. OTOH, national defense is very much the federal govt's job. IIRC, it even says so in the US Constitution. What's disgusting is for NYC and NJ trying to rip-off taxpayers from the rest of the country to pay for their (likely, corrupt and over priced) boondoggle.
@@crucisnh Yes, corruption at the local and state level is very much a part of it. Though I would add that the federal government in the past played a significant role in building infrastructure across the country. The Interstate highway network is one example.
what happens to the old lines - are they filled in? Any more water and they'll collapse, taking the buildings above ground with them and creating sink-holes.
How much does this country spend on foreign wars that do nothing to benefit this country or it's people? There are many major projects that could be diverted from the bloated military industrial complex to infostructure. Next up a pipeline to divert Mississippi flood waters to the Colorado river.
@@laurie7689 I understand your concerns but it could help with the flooding. The problem is we let too many of the wrong people into this country otherwise we would not be having some of these problems. I'm originally from Orange County, NY area and there are water problems in that area of the country as well. There has been a plan to dam the Delaware River north of Port Jervis/Matamoras to create a reservoir for the region. We need to stop immigration and some of these problems will abate.
@@georgestreicher252 It doesn't flood enough to warrant it and we also get periods of drought, too, and I would prefer the extra water be put into reserve here for our uses here than sent across country elsewhere.
We’re gonna see. They won’t touch it until the tunnel actually collapses, then they will act surprised and panicked as if they hadn’t known it was coming for the last 25 years
If we can spend over 50 billion to "aid" Ukraine it its defense against Russia, why can't we spend money to fix our on country? I want all politicians to stop saying "the American people" if we're going to continue to NOT do what is best for the American people, the ones that actually have to travel to work on their own.
Just so we are clear, the project will cost at least $60BN. Original budgets NEVER hold up and increases are nearly automatic once the project starts. $100BN is not unlikely.
All that congestion is wasted, unproductive hours and cars idling... we're just lighting money on fire. Very on brand of that last administration to waste four more years on an already urgent issue. Every year this project gets delayed unnecessarily is just more added cost in lost potential efficiency.
![Twenty One Pilots - “The Line” (from Arcane Season 2) [Official Music Video]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/E2Rj2gQAyPA/mqdefault.jpg)
This is something that should have been done 20 years ago but better late than never
How's it being paid for?
@@1940limited taxes
@@millevenon5853 Like the 40 billion to Ukraine without blinking an eye as we've piddled around with this project for 10 billion less now for 11 years? OK. I get it.
@@1940limited rather is get done than not. in the grand scheme of things, this isn't actually all that expensive. Its nothing compared to the American Rescue Plan.
Pay for it without federal money
All these 20 - 30 bil numbers don't scare me even slightly considering what we spend in 1 year on defense.
More like one fiscal quarter lol
The defense budget is nothing when you compare it to how much we spend on cars and other related expenses. The average American spends $9,282 a year on cars. Multiply that by the total 276 million registered vehicles and you get over $2.56 trillion spent every year. If we spent that same amount of money on public transit and high speed rail, we would have the best system in the world no doubt. We could also invest some to design faster trains.
What about 20 - 30 billion SPIDERS? Not so tough now, are ya buddy?
Build back better 🤣🤣🤣...what a crock.
Whats scary is, trust me. This project will take 20, 30, 40 years to be completed. Thats the American standard for finishing a job and by the time it is completed, the cost would probably went up by like 5 fold or sonething like that.
This is what our tax money should be going towards not making the reps in Congress richer when they don’t realize this project even though it’s just a giant makeover is key to modernizing our train system and what is going to happen when the hyperloop comes into play I think it would be intresting to have a channel on RUclips that would give us video updates on the progress of these projects and maybe give us some history on these old tunnels and in the future these things should be left up to the people and not left to Congress just to be stepped over because they want a bigger paycheck.
Is the railway publicly owned? If not, why should the tax payer fund this? Let the private rail companies seek the investment and pay for it using ticket sales. Rail users should pay for the railways. road users should pay for the roads etc.
@@R.-. yes. It’s publicly owned. Amtrak is majority owned by the US Government.
@@R.-. Because it's critical infrastructure? Last I checked, the economy runs off people, which is what this railway moves. Plus, the fewer people on the roads the better, unless you like traffic jams.
@@R.-. also FWIW, road users have rarely paid for the roads they use. Yes they pay for much of the interstates, but local roads are funded by revenues not directly tied to road use.
@@R.-. The problem with with funding it entirely through ticket sales is that the train riders aren't the only ones to benefit, yet, are the only ones who will be funding it. It increases property values and generates a large amount of money into the New York City economy. With only funding through ticket sales, the price per ticket will be pretty high which will discourage ridership and won't give as many benefits as a publicly-funded project would give.
These projects/repairs/upgrades should have been in place WAY before Sandy. IF we happen to get a change in presidents I'm betting the project will be put on the back burner AGAIN. NYC tunnels overall need repair. And a good amount of new ones built. When the population grows the infrastructure within has to grow and be upgraded to handle the growth! Other countries have no problem getting infrastructure done if need be!
Trump froze federal money because $billions had dropped down the rabbit hole and no one could account for it. Curious that they simply waited until he was gone and are once again dumping in the cash.
Yes! Obtaining eminent domain for infrastructure projects should be as simple and easy here as it is in China!
Blame Congress and the local governments for that one.
@@georgewolfiii1170 well you see the United States is mostly concerned with protecting the wealth and property of big wigs
You’re in luck, trump will win in 2024
Much of this can be laid at the feet of Robert Moses who concentrated his efforts on highway systems and keeping NYC segregated - the policies of the 40's and 50's laid the groundwork for urban flight and thus the decay of many parts of the city. The transport system has not been upgraded in almost 100 years. The Long Island Railroad only goes East/West and it takes hours to move north south between Brooklyn and Queens. It is mainly a question of neglect both in terms of not upgrading what was built but constantly adding to it over time. Show me an American city that has excellent public transport as well as good highways and roads and a A+ for city planning? Anyone?
And the fact that tax-cuts for the profitable companies and the rich who don't pay their fair share of taxes to support the infrastructure they use and need to be profitable and rich.
@J C You must have inhaled too much smoke from your last cross burning.
@@mediterraneanworld cross burning by the satanic, devil worshiping,terrorist,coneheaded KKK is devil worship.
True, reading the power broker you learn of all the missed opportunities nyc unfortunately suffered. Robert Moses didn’t want any type of public transportation in his works. Now we can only look into the future, and try to catch up and make up for the lost time.
Except NY has neglected its subway even after Robert Moses.
Also, the Public housing people were pushed into at the time actually had good facilities. Moses was arguably improving the city at the time by improving the quality of housing.
Also, Moses tried to build highways everywhere, not just poor areas. It’s just that in the rich areas that public opposition stopped him.
The cost of major infrastructure projects in the US never fails to boggle my mind. A stretch of just over 10 miles costing nearly $30 billion is insane. For comparison, the currently longest railway tunnel in the world was completed 5 years ago in Switzerland - not exactly a country known for its cheap labor and shabby construction standards - for a total cost of $12 billion. That project, the Gotthard Base Tunnel, is just about the most complex 35 miles long stretch of railroad ever built, which at the center sits beneith 8000 ft of solid rock. I just can't see how the Gateway Project should cost nearly 10 times as much per mile...
New York is the most expensive area in the USA. It's also complicated to build there due to the Concentration of people.
Every form of graft imaginable: Bribery, kickbacks, embezzlement, fraud, bid-rigging, etc.
More Democrat BS.Trust Trump.
@@AFoxGuy not just real estate cost. Trump denied this project to save his real estate Empire. So much capitalism, not just Trump
Do you think that tunnel in Switzerland would have cost the same if 10 million people lived on and around where it was being constructed? You can’t compare cost per mile in the middle of nowhere in Switzerland to one of the most densest, most expensive cities in the world 1 to 1 like that. True, 29 billion is a lot of money, but it’s worth it. A lot has to be done to make sure everyone’s lives can continue while this work is being done, and that is very expensive.
When the government says something will cost $30b in NYC, it's really going to cost $100b
True that!
@@williamnessanbaum7464 also finished in 100 years !
Waiting years sure did not help
And if Elon Musk was asked I bet he would negotiate
Do it tax free … with alternative payment as residual income to him.
And the scope will be drastically scaled back.
These numbers are small in 2022 dollars for an economy so massive as US. This project is needed and good but Japanese style fast trains are needed from Phillt to NYC to Boston with a Montreal branch with stops in Albany and an eventual Buffalo branch.
A new Netro North would help lower NYC rents and spur upstate economic expansion
We would need to build new tracks and we would would need eminent domain to have the space for such high speed tracks.
Does upState want expansion?
@@OllieRamone In China eminent domain is simple, routine, and automatic. It should be that same way here.
Dc to Boston with future expansion to Richmond and Hampton Roads
I agree and would love that project to happen
We need more like this across the nation
If we as a nation added up the wasted money and time spent by the Trump administration screwing up virtually everything they touched we would be far ahead with a new infrastructure plan. In place of working on bridges and tunnels his desire was to build a Mexican Wall. God, there are many stupid people in the USA. Especially those that supported and still support Trump.
Keep voting for Biden
@@chasemorgan2788 hell no
If the Dems stop spending money on welfare and foreign give aways,we would
YEAH! Let's get that Sioux Falls to Boise line up and running! Add some cattle cars, too! BONANZA!
I am a regular Washington-New Haven commuter. This is a very exiting development. When I ride Amtrak, I am always envious of the European countries where significant rail investments have been made and rail is even faster and more convenient. That said, I find Amtrak a much preferred option to driving or flying. And it will be even better with these investments.
This is good news because this is much needed and in my opinion should not be postponed any longer with the current infrastructure crumbling!!
You left out that fact the project was canceled not once but twice. Prior to it being down graded by the Donald Trump Administration it was canceled by New Jersey Governor Chris Christie because of its over priced cost.
The Gateway Program previously know as the Gateway Project is solution to a different problem. It add no increase in capacity for Amtrak, it simple allows New Jersey Transit a separate path into New York Penn Station.
A better solution should have been placing the two new tunnels, one up stream and the other down stream of the existing North River Tunnels. That configuration would have doubled the capacity for both Amtrak and New Jersey Transit.
From what I understand the planning engineers did not want to devise a engineering solution to a problem that builders of the North River Tunnels discovered over a hundred years ago after those tunnels were built.
New York is losing people popular, while rat population is on the rise.
Mega City are unmanageable. Suburbs are more conducive to a quality life. Unless you own a rat Terrior, and go rat hunting.
Christy nevver supported the project even with the Obama admin kicking in federal funds to cover 50% of the cost. Hard to believe with the importance of the NY metro area to the economic healh of the country. Trump focused his personal animosity towards the NY legal system as his motivation to cancel the project.
@@richardkrochmal6028 Christy canceled it when the price tag jumped from $8 bn to 12 and then to $16 bn in 3 years with no design in place. It is a utterly corrupted effort.
@@jamesb4789 Christy's heart was never in the right place for the project to advance. You mention that costs that were involved and no final design in place. I agree with you. Bring in the unions without strict oversight and you have exactly what happened a cancelled project. Sometimes, it's worth while to remember that New York's GDP was approximately $1.5 trillion in 2021. Almost as much as Russia's ($1.75 trillion 2021). Try to imagine the loss of life and economic harm that would have befallen the country had the existing tunnel collapsed. At times it seems that we have allowed our demons to take over our common sense. I have no love for Christy. Yet, he was voted in by the residents of NJ. Had he more imagination and the political will to crack the whip the project could, as it should have, progressed during his administration.
@@jamesb4789 He also cancelled it because NJ was left to cover the cost overruns and not jointly between NY and NJ.
This should be number one priority for New York!
Besides fighting crime. smh
Ok.. anyone who thinks this will get done at under $30B has lost their minds.
New York City voted in 2004 to add another subway line. They didn't start breaking ground on that until 2012 and didn't finish phase 1 until New Year's 2017.
It went 3x over budget. Mind you they still have another 4 phases to complete.
I commute into and out of NYC ever day. This is a pointless project. The city is dying due to horrendous leadership and a handicapped police force. This is a complete waste of money we don’t have.
Also one World Trade Center. 1.5 bil budget. 3.8 bil total cost.
@@JM-ks3ir this is a laughable comment that I've seen people make almost every year of my life. NYC has been America's largest, and most economically important city for almost our entire history.
And the police force wouldn't have been "Handicapped" if the corrupt fuckers could've just behaved like public servants. PBA cards are a indication of their overall behavior, they refuse to police themselves.
@@JM-ks3ir move to Oklahoma!
@@mediterraneanworld Thats why the city is dying people with brains are leaving
Major projects in a place like NYC are very costly. The city is old and congested not just with people, but with other infrastructure. Those tunnels probably contain miles of cable and pipes unrelated to the railroad itself. When these projects are done, they also have to mitigate disrupting the existing services as they are being upgraded and/or replaced. The city can't just stop while these projects are underway.
A good example - Boston's Big Dig. Took a decade, but they burrowed under a nearly 400 year old city having to move thousands of miles of cable, pipes and conduit touching everything from sewer lines, electricity, internet and phone cables, steam pipes, subway lines, water pipes etc., as well as tunneling underneath existing rail lines and the Boston harbor - all without disrupting services. Despite the cost overruns that always made the news - they did an incredible job of not disrupting services over that decade of construction.
Honestly, I highly doubt it will be finished by 2030. probably gonna take another 10 years.
The PRR built the original tunnels in only 6 years and that was back at the very beginning of the 20th century with less sophisticated construction equipment and techniques. A new set of tunnels today shouldn't take very long to build. I'm sure it won't be too long.
30 billion for this after years of debate, but they sent 40 billion to Ukraine with the snap of a finger... There are likely more places in need of construction in the U.S still.
The government should BOTH fund this project and assist Ukraine.
It's unfortunate that this obviously extremely important project is being debated at all, but there's no reason to disparage the also vital foreign aide to ukraine
@Nicholas Time funding coups? Elaborate pls. You're saying the revolution was paid for by the US? On what evidence? What was the money used for?
You conspiracy theorists think any time there's a pro-western revolution, it MUST be because the CIA is involved. It couldn't possibly be the Ukranian people didn't want to be a puppet state for the poor shithole that is Russia
@@moist_ointment lol… Ukraine lol…. Your name fits you well
Why do I get the feeling that Trump cancelled federal support for this purely because such support was offered by Obama?
That’s very likely part of it, but Chuck Schumer too, along with being a retaliatory act for lack of support for his border wall. But, repeat the slogan ‘America First’ enough times and people will actually believe it if they really want to…
probably more because he would be the one who wanted to authorize it and thus take credit.
trump cancelled federal support because the program is a complete mess and is not being done in a good way
Had the Pennsylvania Railroad still existed to this very day those new tunnels would have been built years ago already. The PRR was a very wealthy railroad back in its heyday. After all there's a reason why it was known as "the standard railroad of the world".
The Pennsylvania Railroad began losing money back in 1947. That's why they sold the air rights of Pennsylvania Station to the developers of Madison Square Garden in 1962. That beautiful architectural gem was torn down to make way for the 4th Madison Square Garden. That still didn't save the PRR; they merged with rival railroads New York Central and New Haven and Hartford to form Penn Central in 1968. They filed for bankruptcy in 1970.
There has also been talk of extending the NYC Subway 7 line to the Meadowlands in New Jersey. I know I would like to see this happen.
On the same token, I'd like to see PATH extended to Atlantic Terminal.
The George Washington Bridge was built expecting a subway line to go to Hackensack and maybe all the way to Paramus.
So never then. Take NJT
Then have New York & New Jersey pay for it
Isn't there talk of all kinds of MTA expansions? I say just do all of them. The MTA has so many overdue expansions that are contributing to the overcrowding and delays
"All told, the Gateway Program will cost 29.5 billion dollars." I'm taking bets on when the projected cost tops $100 billion. Any takers?
I think more modestly, tops $45 billion
You said it, the NYC subway is a dump. People love to complain about our country's existence, but at least we have a gorgeous metro system
Hi Kim, miss you
You have a pic of Trump's lover
😆😆😆
Babe wake up Futurology posted
Needs to be done, but it will surely cost twice as much and take twice as long as planned. Fortunes will be made.
From an overseas perspective it does appear that the US has neglected its railway infrastructure.
It's crazy how expensive even such a "modest" infrastructure renewl project gets.
It’s not modest
It's nothing compared to the YEARLY Department of Defense budget. Projects like this will have significantly more economic impact year over year.
The cost is an investment - the fact we are using these structures over 100 years later means this project's 'real' cost is actually 1% of that plus maintenance - around 295m/yr which is a true drop in the ocean for such a massive area (i mean that's what, $1000 per year per commuter or $1.30 per person per trip just for the locals, and that's not even counting all the long distance travellers or new customers)
@@BroodWar4Ever true, but I guess it still can be optimized if they are really willing for prices to go down, which ofc the won't
Bureaucracy and unions lol
I used to commute into Manhattan from the Summit area (Morristown line). I would never do it again, and regret all those hours I wasted stranded on one side or the other. Never! It's awful, outdated, and embarrassing.
Where have you been man? It's been 3 months. Hope everythings good
Say it with me North Jersey people....'THE BERGEN LOOP!'
I remember the "big dig' in Boston and all of the projections thrown out the window.
Boston's project was a mess, road infrastructure like that is wildly inefficient and only encourages congestion further. "Lipstick on a pig" comes to mind.
Seems like a worthwhile project but jeez, if people could work remotely this would be less of an issue.
They have a hard time securing $30 billion for critical national infrastructure, but we have billions to send to Ukraine in addition to a whole bunch of other countries who don't contribute anything to pool of tax dollars needed to keep this country running.
There's always money for war or the rich. The same people that bitch about socialism get government handouts with no strings attached and no questions. If a poor person NEEDS a dollar they make them jump through hoop after hoop and call him a lazy POS. The rich now own 60% of the wealth up from 40% in 1980 they have to have everything and they wanna make sure no one else has anything. Something has to change.
They got 30 billion at the drop of a hat for Ukraine. Schumer, Pelosi et al need to be replaced
Ukraine foreign aide is vital for not only the security of the western world, as in, stopping a dictator from bombing and invading a country for wanting to align with us, but it's also vital to secure LNG, oil, shipping lanes from black sea, wheat supplies, and Neon supplies (this one is particularly important).
In addition, adding 40m more people to the western alliance and all of their infrastructure and resources, will pay back the costs of support in time.
That being said, this project should ALSO be high priority. Theres no reason to specifically target Ukrainian foreign aide, as if the government can only do one of the other. Trump canceled federal funding for the program long before the current Ukraine war
The whole reason for foreign "aid" is not to help foreign countries, but to provide a steady stream of money for top government officials in this country. If $100 million is given to a foreign country, we require that about 1/3 of it be wired into bank accounts that are controlled by top officials in this country. Another 1/3 is taken by top officials of the country that received the money.
@@georgewolfiii1170 This may surprise you, but there are these things called 'reputable sources'. They're really cool and something tells me you haven't looked at one in a while.
I live on the Raritan Valley line - a station that has never had one seat transit into NY. Instead we have had switches in Newark and endless delays. This was supposed to have resolved by 2016. Now I will be retired by the time this is done
I am so happy direct bergen to nyc I’m crying
Trains are cool, I hope the US finally get to that realization
We have lots of trains and track here in the USA - only it is used for freight, not people.
Trains themselves are cool. But it is far from cool to share a train with homeless, addicts, rapist and muggers, and other undesirables. The only places in USA where anyone would want to ride a train are the nice, safe areas where trains aren't even needed.
*Yeah trains are cool... until you get pushed in front of one by one of the many random lunatics in the New York City subway system.*
Snarky comment from someone who forgets that the USA industrialized itself over 150 years ago back when most nation's infrastructure was in the Stone Age.
@@SquidProQuo80 I don’t see why this matters
You should have started with, then Governor, Chris Christie's cancellation of the ARC (Access to the Region's Core) project in 2010. That was the original plan to build two new tunnels under the Hudson to take the load off of the original North River Tunnels dug by the PRR.
29.5BN to get it started and finish 5% of the project, and request for more funding to move the project forward infinitely many more times to get more money. Check out what's happening to the railway project in Hawaii that started decades ago. Still not finished.
We spent over 800 billion on military spending in just 2021 years with literally no actual Benefit. This is a drop in the bucket.
If we don't start wars every where, we can build a project like this in every state.
I guarantee this will actually cost $100B when it's eventually completed in 2060.
29.5? by the time it's done (MAYBE in our lifetime), it will cost 150 billion at least.
New Jersey actually would not be cut off from Manhattan because they still would have the PATH train to 33rd Street. Which is around the corner from Penn Station.
What if what happened with California's high speed rail project also happens here? I know its very different but NY already took a decade longer than it was said to build East Side Access and 3 times the projected cost just to build a few miles of new tunnels with most of the work already done for them
It will happen. But that should be a given now. Every project has cost overruns and it’s been that way for centuries now. People keep acting like this is something new. I’ve just started adding 5 extra years and triple the budget to any project now.
A lot of HSR's cost overruns are due to land easements and legal disputes in the central valley, which wouldn't be a problem. Here. It's not NEW train lines, it's widening and improving existing train routes
Don't forget the 2nd Ave Subway debacle. The 2nd Ave subway proposal was drawn up in 1925. 50 years later, they completed 1 mile of tunnel, then it was stopped. IT didn't start up again until almost 40 years after that. Now at the cost of billions upon billions, THREE ,count 'em THREE new stations and almost two miles of tunnel are finally in operation. What the taxpayers of NYC NYS and the USA received after all that money and time was spent is equivalent to spending a half million dollars on a toothbrush and waiting a hundred years to actually get it and then only getting one quarter of it!
Up here in Boston we faced the same thing with the Big Dig. $2B project ended up costing $16B and with interest balloons to $22B. However, when you see how much Boston benefit from the Interstate going underground and more efficient, Boston will make many times that back, if it hasn't done so already. There are entire areas of Boston developed to the 9s that was waste land before.
But, MA also learned it's lesson from the corruption and overruns. When it came time to wide a critical highway, Rte 3 from NH to Burlington, they crafted a contract that made a ton of sense. The contractor that won the bid would get paid for the cost to build AND to maintain the project over a number of decades. MA would also negotiate to add to any unforeseen overruns. The money to maintain would be lucrative for the company, but also would not be extended. If the contractor did quality work that stood the rest of time, they pocket the money they don't need to use. If not, it's on their dime. The project also had a deadline the contractor would pay penalties on if not done on time.
The project was done on time, mostly on budget and without any issues over the first 17 years of the project's completion.
Obviously widening a highway is tiny compared to the Gateway Project, but most of the principles would work, of applied by experts.
Of course, the fact Amtrak had no master plan upon the project being greenlighted is highly alarming....
@@derbagger22 Big Dig was a massive mistake. Traffic should've been routed around boston, not underground. City center tunnels being used for car traffic is just wasteful.
How do those bridge cost 1.8 billion dollars each? Especially when they're the same???? It should be a third of that for both.
Normally in the NYC region, the increased costs are attributed to higher union wages for all trades plus guaranteeing little to no interruption to ongoing train service. And in the case of those bridges, it would also include no interruption to shipping route service.
@@KillaninjaFC I find it a bit hard to believe that's the cause. Minimum wage in Australia is similar to NYC when you convert the dollar. Median wages are much much higher. It's generally regarded as one of the most expensive places to build stuff but doesn't even come close to NYC. They're not long bridges and it's not difficult terrain. They're not that tall either. You build them and at the last stage you relay the track on the new route. That price is just stupid.
tony Soprano gets a piece thanks to Chuckie.
@@KillaninjaFC That is irrelevant in the bridge case. It is not hard to do that and minimize the barge traffic. It is not a ship route, but barge. The existing rotating bridge does not open far enough for ocean going vessels and the channel is fairly shallow. the central arch design would easily be built in place with minimal issue shipping wise.
Everyone in the supply chain gets their taste.
the only downside to this project is that they have to dismantle the old Portal Brige
but I seen no one care, so I'll guess it's a small sacrifice to drastically upgrade NYC transport
It is sad to see historic infrastructure like that just die. I always think that recycling structures when possible is the way to go.
Portal bridge has a bunch of issues unfortunately, it regularly creates massive delays
I think the bridge has a lot of problems so that might be a good thing
I'm all for the Gateway Project however like all massive infrastructure constructions, the cost will balloon to more than double, the completion timeframe will balloon to more than double, and plenty of politicians and contractors will retire off the graft that goes hand-in-hand with massive infrastructure constructions.
Somebody please tell me how much over-budget and over-time has been the East Side Access project.
I understand your worries, but the alternative is no Gateway project - letting the already deteriorating tunnels collapse, displacing thousands of jobs, etc.
How right you are about "the graft that goes hand-in-hand with massive infrastructure projects."
A certain amount of graft ends up being the price you pay for doing big things. The alternative is... not doing the things, which is worse.
@@RoyWiggins In the world to come, when Jesus and his people rule the Earth (instead of Satan and his people), there will be no money, no graft, no greed, no cheating to get ahead, and no graft or corruption. That world will begin in late 2035, after the very last of the devil-worshippers have been removed from the Earth, and God's people can takeover.
I heard from people in these types of works that there is a lot of money wasting involved.
Crazy how the American government has sent over $60 billion to Ukraine…. While this project is concerned too “ pricey “ for the American people
So who's going to finish first Gateway project or 2nd ave subway or maybe a Subway tunnel connecting Brooklyn to Staten Island?
@Nicholas Time Staten Island is an untapped area that people resist moving to because of wonky transportation. Both a subway line from Brooklyn and the PATH from Grove Street should be extended into Shaolin.
Thank you President Biden for moving this foreword
Not to mention the rebuild and activation of the Lackawanna Cutoff for NY to Scranton, including the Poconos.
By the time it is done it will be more like 50 to 60 billion dollars project.
It would still be worth it!
So what
@@katjerouac people who live in there have to pay higher taxes and fees to offset these costs that is do what.
@@doctorstrangelove9487 you're also not thinking about possibilities that this could do for passenger rail. Faster commutes for both Amtrak and NJT with eliminating delays, brand new lines from NJT, wayy more frequent service, and all the climate benefits too with removing cars.
@@_SP64_ I didn’t say don’t do it I just know from experience how much taxpayers will be squeezed out of money.
The Outerbridge crossing between Staten island and New Jersey needs to be replaced ASAP! It's suited for ox carts, not cars
I wouldn't hold your breath on getting this done anytime soon. I expect politics will get in the way and slow it down at the very least.
Ohh so there are extra tracks elsewhere but the Bergen loop is not needed and neither is penn expansion they can add infill stations for LIRR
there should be a subway tunnel connecting Staten island to the rest of train lines in nyc . tired of the slow boat ride & expensive toll & traffic on the v bridge .
well, there is an abandoned subway tunnel connecting SI to Brooklyn because it WAS supposed to happen...but it was canceled in 1925. When the Access to the Region's Core project was originally canceled in 2010, fed. funds allocated for it could've went to the tunnel as one of the many alternatives.
I agree. I live in Queens and to get to SI, I'd have to drive through all of that Brooklyn traffic only to then face the Verrezano traffic, and pay a $17 toll to boot. A subway line could allow residents in Queens, Brooklyn, and the Bronx to have an affordable way to get to Staten Island. I myself would never drive to SI if I could just take the train.
This project would not have been possible without Moynihan Station and Grand Central Madison being completed. Now the Penn rehab and new tunnels can start!
i had a feeling that Trump would stop this but why?! That's his city and lives in the city all his life.
Because NYC voted blue in 216 so it was his childish way of retribution.
@@robw1571 yeah, if he’s going to do that then vote blue lol
I've been one of the designers for this project since 2008. Hope it will be finished 1/3 this time before I retire:)
At 5:29 you show a blue line indicating a future high speed rail network. At Newark, NJ it goes Northwest and does not follow the existing NE Corridor line. Is that a plan is is it just a random doodle?
It looks pretty similar to a high speed rail path I saw proposed a couple years back when I lived in CT. They've revised the path many times so whatever is shown would only be a temporary rough estimate anyway. As far as I'm aware it's only gotten as far as an idea, and is already being fought hard by the NIMBY types around each proposed path.
The route between DC and NYC Penn station was laid out in the 1962 bullet train proposal put together by the PRR. Gateway is based on that proposal and in fact they cheated and used the original design with upgrades. In 2008 it was a simple purely functional design adn then the politicians grabbed it and the costs ballooned. Did you know the original Japanese bullet trains were based on the Untied Technologies design for a bullet train for the PRR. The japanese bought the design when the PRR sidelined the project. Sixty years later we are starting to build the first segment of the HS route.
DON'T WAIT FOR TRAIN. GET OUT OF NYC WHILE YOU CAN!
This is a good summary, but it's a pretty irresponsible that you failed to mention Chris Christie's cancellation of this project in 2010, when it would have cost ~$8.7 billion at the time.
It was always 30 billion, everyone knew that behind closed doors. That's why he cancelled it because he knew the actual cost was going to be over the estimated 8 $billion
@@WJK184 And history has proven Chris Christie made the right decision
@@WJK184 Lol no he vetoed it to spite his democrat opponents. That's the only reason.
@@moosesandmeese969 you know this how? This is the sane Chris Christie that appointed Cory Booker, a Democrat to a vacant Senate seat. I'm sure the fact NJ taxpayers would have been on the hook for the overage had nothing to do with it.
@@moosesandmeese969 You should at least go back and read the headlines from the time. The project was originally $8 bn then jumped to 12 then to 16 in less than three years and the project managers had no done the design nor did they have any real basis to cap the costs. Christy cancelled a corrupt money pit.
Its great that they intend to have north Jersey railway lines loop into the city, but the Bergen Line is still a single track! It needs to be dueled and ideally replaced by a light rail system.
Hey. I notice on your map a line in red going north from Penn Station in the city. Could you explain what this is please and if it is a possible further extension connecting to grand central? All the best. Mathew.
I think it was a mistake. There's no existing line in that location. I believe it was meant to be the West Side Line, which runs up the Hudson River and serves trains that run to points north via Albany. It doesn't actually run in the location shown, but instead trains exit Penn heading back West and then turn North.
@@kirkrotger9208 Its a planned extension of the Metro-North to Penn Station
@@kevinshull5856 That's going to happen via the existing Hell Gate Line that Amtrak uses in Queens. No new ROW is being built.
That would connect the Harlem metro north line to Penn. Wow that would be convenient. Right now you have to get out of NJ transit, take a subway crosstown to Grand Central but another ticket and catch a different train up north. It runs down Lexington in the city then branches off to all points north after 125th street. There's another metro north train that runs up the Hudson river and I don't think it goes as far east but it still starts out in Grand Central.
As many Catholic children recite "Lead us not into Penn Station" 😂
Thank you. You helped me understand this very important project. 👍
I would like to see all NYC transit infrastructure rebuilt and improved. It would be a payment on the future of the USA
For all of Christie's faults, I was glad he put the kabosh on the stupid NJ Transit proposal to build a stub end six track terminal beneath New York's Penn Station. It made no sense. A project alainged with AMTRAK, NJ Transit and the LI Railroad is critical for the overall success of regional mobility. Nice to see the groundbreaking pictured for the Portal Bridges. Signs of hope.
BTW, the Northeast Corridor now extents to Richmond, Newport News, Roanoke and Lynchburg
Still frustrating that he took the funds from that project to shitty highway projects instead of giving it to NJT.
The NYC 2nd ave subway line costs $3 billion per mile. The most expensive in the history of the world.
Um... any particular reason there's blink-and-you'll-miss-it footage of Russian passenger trains at 5:09 into this video? The 'pnd' on the side of the train is the giveaway... just curious, not insinuating anything... :-)
great video
I'm sure that one thousand 30 million USD projects in the countryside would have a much better impact than this.
Orange president wasted 4 years of everyone's time
Yeah, that project is so much better than helping the local population financially.
You take first place for most ignorant comment so far 👍
improving public transportation does improve people's lives financially. And we are talking about a project that if ignored will cripple the entire NEC.
Path train is okay by itself. FIX THE OLDASS SUBWAY STATIONS
The PATH train is not okay. It's archaic and needs its routes and efficiency reimagined.
The population of New York City, the five boroughs that is, is supposedly up to 8.8 million, not 8.2 million ...
Once the new tunnels are built, the existing North River Tunnels need to be shut down and rebuilt. Without that, you’ve only modernized the status quo. You need four tracks under the Hudson to match the four tracks under the East River if you ever want to increase capacity.
That's essentially the plan. We won't see significant capacity increases until years after the new tunnels open as the old ones are going to be totally overhauled.
NYC really should combine nj transit and LIRR and through run the whole thing
and Metro North - as it is - I must say it is both a very well integrated system as well as having good fares (for the subway, bus, and ferries, that is).
NYC is so important that Trump should have spent money to add several 100 miles of metro rail and built and repaired the dozen other bridges and or tunnels needed to give the city a far better circulation of traffic and turn a city once undisputed as the greatest mega city (many have passed it) back into the greatest city on earth!!!
Say what you will about Gov. Cuomo but I cant think of anyone who did more to improve NYC infrastructure than him.
Trump said he is a great business man but didnt give NYC Metripolitan money? Would have increased his property value and large infrastructure project are as well connected to politicians.
@@salakasto I got a guy much better than Cuomo in mind. He held 12 different unelected positions in government and literally drafted the modern city charter.
@@Neuzahnstein And get caught stealing from the cookie jar? Trump realized he had more to offer than just building big structures and he didn't want the first billionaire politician to be labeled as corrupt.
@@shanekeenaNYC Robert Moses? The guy that obliterated American cities in favor of car dependent suburbia? Yeah I think Cuomo has a one up on him.
The cost sounds insane. I get that it's needed, but damn.
Considering the amount that is spent on the military, pointless invasions, and foreign aid, it's actually disgusting this wasn't done sooner.
It stresses me out just thinking about it
Building bridges and tunnels for NYC and NJ is their job, not the Federal govt's job. OTOH, national defense is very much the federal govt's job. IIRC, it even says so in the US Constitution. What's disgusting is for NYC and NJ trying to rip-off taxpayers from the rest of the country to pay for their (likely, corrupt and over priced) boondoggle.
@@crucisnh Yes, corruption at the local and state level is very much a part of it. Though I would add that the federal government in the past played a significant role in building infrastructure across the country. The Interstate highway network is one example.
what happens to the old lines - are they filled in? Any more water and they'll collapse, taking the buildings above ground with them and creating sink-holes.
The US is so dated
"high speed train... that amtrec hope to get running by 2040"
based. i love sensible infrastructural investments
They need to make a train that goes from Brooklyn queens to the Bronx
They’re working on it
@@katjerouac Isn't it just an extension from Queens to south of Flatbush? I haven't heard anything about Bronx.
Dump ALL incumbents.
Nice video
How much does this country spend on foreign wars that do nothing to benefit this country or it's people? There are many major projects that could be diverted from the bloated military industrial complex to infostructure. Next up a pipeline to divert Mississippi flood waters to the Colorado river.
Nope. We need the water in the Ole Miss to keep the barges moving. If people from CO or those downriver want MS water, then they can move to MS.
@@laurie7689 I understand your concerns but it could help with the flooding. The problem is we let too many of the wrong people into this country otherwise we would not be having some of these problems. I'm originally from Orange County, NY area and there are water problems in that area of the country as well. There has been a plan to dam the Delaware River north of Port Jervis/Matamoras to create a reservoir for the region. We need to stop immigration and some of these problems will abate.
@@georgestreicher252 It doesn't flood enough to warrant it and we also get periods of drought, too, and I would prefer the extra water be put into reserve here for our uses here than sent across country elsewhere.
It really makes you wonder wtf these useless farts are doing in congress. This stuff should've been done a decade ago. We are falling so far behind.
the noises I made every time they explained an improvement... this will solve so many problems with NJ Transit
Where the bullet trains? It's okay but ny could use that too.
Don't worry. It's new york. You'll never see it completed during your time as a commuter.
We’re gonna see. They won’t touch it until the tunnel actually collapses, then they will act surprised and panicked as if they hadn’t known it was coming for the last 25 years
I would like to see the path extend into Passaic and Bergen county.
The pettiness of the Trumps never ceases to amaze me
Is Trump paying you rent? Because he is still living in your head!
America needs better light rail. Hopefully, this project doesn't get delayed/.
2040 is insane for a high speed rail in the US
Every other country will have another technology by then.
'quickly deteriorated tunnel', cmon, man, it is 100 years old. is that quickly?
If we can spend over 50 billion to "aid" Ukraine it its defense against Russia, why can't we spend money to fix our on country? I want all politicians to stop saying "the American people" if we're going to continue to NOT do what is best for the American people, the ones that actually have to travel to work on their own.
people from this region will likely move to other parts of the US before this project is actually completed
This belief comes from someone who probably lives nowhere near the area. Conservatives actually believe people are moving away from cities lol
NYC has 8.9 million
Just so we are clear, the project will cost at least $60BN. Original budgets NEVER hold up and increases are nearly automatic once the project starts. $100BN is not unlikely.
All that congestion is wasted, unproductive hours and cars idling... we're just lighting money on fire. Very on brand of that last administration to waste four more years on an already urgent issue. Every year this project gets delayed unnecessarily is just more added cost in lost potential efficiency.
It’s not urgent for 99.9% of the county. Not my problem FJB
@@jackip2ava these areas contribute a lot to the nation as a whole. So yes urgent
@@fuchsia02 Probably in whatever third world s-hole that you are from. But not urgent in America
Thank you. Finally. Let West Virginia and Kentucky continue to fall apart.