WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-Del.), a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, filed an amendment Wednesday to the Commerce-Justice-Science/Transportation-Housing and Urban Development/Agriculture “minibus” appropriations bill to help Amtrak make progress on its nearly $6 billion backlog of deferred improvements to its infrastructure.
"Amtrak is a fundamental part of America's economic infrastructure, especially in the Northeast Corridor,” Senator Coons said. “Senator Murray deserves a lot of credit for her ensuring the Senate's THUD appropriations bill invests solidly in capital improvement projects. I'm grateful to her for that. Amtrak needs nearly $6 billion in capital improvements. Whether it's now or later, this infrastructure debt will need to be addressed. Amtrak is serving more customers and operating more efficiently than it ever has. It is on the right track. Now is when we should be investing in Amtrak's growth."
The Transportation-Housing and Urban Development (THUD) spending bill adopted by the Appropriations Committee included a total of $1.39 billion for Amtrak, including $891 million for capital projects. Senator Coons’ amendment would add $230 million for capital projects, increasing total funding for Amtrak to $1.62 billion.
The amendment can be downloaded as a PDF here: http://1.usa.gov/1oHnLMn