On Friday, Vice President Joeseph R. Biden paid a visit to the train station bearing his name in Wilmington to announce a $2.45 billion loan to improve Northeast Corridor service.
Biden and Deputy Secretary of Transportation Victor Mendez announced the loan to Amtrak by the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Build America Bureau through its Railroad Rehabilitation and Improvement Financing Program.
It’s the largest single loan in Department of Transportation’s history.
Wilmington is one of Amtrak’s busiest stations. Biden is a long-time supporter and throughout his time as a U.S. Senator commuted to as an from Washington, D.C. via Wilmington.
With this loan, Amtrak will purchase 28 new trainsets for the Acela service on the Northeast Corridor – with about 40 percent more seats than currently offered on Acela trainsets. The service will provide customers traveling between Washington, DC, through New York, NY and into Boston, an increase in the capacity and frequency of Acela service.
The loan will also be used to provide necessary track upgrades between the New Carrolton and Baltimore stations, and perform station and platform improvements at four of the busiest stations in the Northeast Corridor – Moynihan Station, Washington Union Station, Baltimore Penn Station, and New Carrolton Station. The upgrades will improve the safety of the Northeast Corridor mainline, and improve passenger experience and reliability, a White House press release stated.
“This loan is a key step to providing investments needed to help keep high-speed trains moving throughout the region, and to help all commuters in the Northeast Corridor,” Biden said. “We need these kinds of investments to keep this region – and our whole country – moving, and to create new jobs.”
With the newly announced $2.45 billion loan to Amtrak, total DOT loans total approximately $5.1 billion.
The upgrade program comes as demand for Acela service remains strong, according to an Amtrak release. Airport security hassles and other factors have kept passenger counts on the upswing.
The new trainsets will allow for increased service including half-hourly Acela Express service between Washington D.C. and New York City during peak hours, and hourly service between New York City and Boston.
Amtrak will invest in significant station improvements at Washington Union Station, Moynihan Station New York, as well as track capacity and ride quality improvements along the corridor.
Amtrak employs more than 1,000 in Delaware.
