Panel of Outside Experts to Re-examine and Reimagine Designs to Develop High Speed Rail on New York’s Empire Corridor
Proposal Builds on Governor’s Success Working with Outside Experts to Implement a Novel Approach to Repairing the L Train Tunnel Without Shutting Down Service
Governor Andrew M. Cuomo today announced the 13th proposal of his 2020 State of the State agenda – convening outside experts to reexamine and rethink strategies to bring high-speed rail to New York. The Governor will task a panel of engineers to reexamine past high-speed rail plans, question and rethink every assumption and method, and recommend a new plan for how to build faster, greener, more reliable high-speed rail in New York.
«High speed rail is transforming economies around the world. We’ve been told that bringing this technology to our state is too expensive, too difficult and would take too long – that’s not an acceptable attitude for New York,» Governor Cuomo said. «When we developed our plan to repair the L Train Tunnel, the team of experts we assembled questioned every assumption and brought new creativity to a seemingly intractable problem. We not only found a way to repair the tunnel without shutting down service, we are doing it ahead of schedule. This kind of outside-the-box thinking will help us determine how we could deliver high speed rail for New York.»
Most of the State’s population lives a short distance from the Empire Corridor, which connects the State through New York City, Albany, and Buffalo. However, these lines average 51 miles per hour, meaning it is often the slowest method available for New Yorkers.
Recommendations to implement high speed rail across the State, which have not changed much over the last two decades, have consistently estimated that projects would take decades and be unaffordable. This team of experts will review these past studies, and strategies that countries all over the world have used to build thousands of miles of high-speed rail, to ask every question and find the best way to build high-speed rail in New York.
No other state has demonstrated a stronger commitment to rebuilding its transportation infrastructure than New York under Governor Cuomo. The Governor’s latest five-year, $150 billion infrastructure plan builds upon his historic $100 billion infrastructure initiative that concluded last year. The capital projects included in these plans rebuild transportation and mass transit systems, construct safe and secure affordable housing, drive economic and community development, build new and better school buildings for 21st century learning, create new environmental and park facilities, support our sustainable energy future, and generate 675,000 new jobs and expand opportunity for all New Yorkers.
New Yorkers are already benefiting from the capital assets funded through the initial $100 billion infrastructure plan, from the Gov. Mario M. Cuomo Bridge, to the 2nd Avenue Subway, to rebuilding Upstate airports, to downtown revitalizations and water infrastructure projects all across the state. These projects are supporting the creation of approximately 450,000 jobs and contribute to New York’s all-time high job count. Since the beginning of Governor Cuomo’s administration, New York State’s economy has experienced employment growth in 76 of the past 88 months.