The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey and New Jersey Transit are set to receive $234 million in federal funds as reimbursement for ongoing capital work as well as new projects related to Superstorm Sandy recovery efforts.
Under the Federal Transit Administration’s Emergency Relief Program, PANYNJ was awarded about $167 million for the PATH rail system and NJT $67 million. The U.S. Dept. of Transportation’s agency so far has allocated $1.36 billion to PANYNJ and $448.2 million to NJT through the program.
For all transit agencies eligible to receive Sandy aid, FTA says it has so far allocated about 55% of the relief program’s $10.35 billion. The agency announced last December that it would make $3 billion in competitive funding available for regional resiliency projects.
FTA says it is currently reviewing 64 proposals totaling more than $6 billion in requests and that project selections will be announced later this year.
For PANYNJ, the latest funding supports 15 capital projects including replacing power, signal and communications equipment destroyed by the storm; purchasing new locomotives; and acquiring storm-mitigation equipment such as temporary power substations and water-removal systems and barriers.
NJT’s allotment supports seven projects including a new interoperable communications center in Maplewood, N.J., which will serve as a consolidated command and control center during major weather events; repairing and restoring the Newark and Hudson-Bergen light rail lines; dredging storm-deposited silt from the Weehawken Port Imperial Ferry Terminal; and purchasing new fueling trucks to supply diesel locomotives and other equipment that may be stranded during emergencies.
Since Sandy, FTA and other federal agencies have helped to ensure the PATH system is returned to a state of good repair and that it maintains safe operations, said Pat Foye, PANYNJ executive director, in a statement about the latest funding. “The work of the bi-state congressional delegation and the FTA will help the Port Authority recover 90 percent of the costs to fix this vital rail line for residents of New York and New Jersey,” he added.
