Northeast Corridor Capital Investment Plan Fiscal Years 2021-2025 October 2020 Congress established the Northeast Corridor Commission to develop coordinated strategies for improving the Northeast’s core rail network in recognition of the inherent challenges of planning, financing, and implementing major infrastructure improvements that cross multiple jurisdictions. The expectation is that by coming together to take collective responsibility for the NEC, these disparate stakeholders will achieve a level of success that far exceeds the potential reach of any individual organization. The Commission is governed by a board comprised of one member from each of the NEC states (Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, and Maryland) and the District of Columbia; four members from Amtrak; and five members from the U.S. Department of Transportation. The Commission also includes non-voting representatives from four freight railroads, states with connecting corridors, and several commuter operators in the region. Contents Letter from the Co-Chairs 1 Introduction 3 FY21-25 Capital Investment Plan 6 NEC Investment Summary 6 NEC Infrastructure Investments with Funding Available in FY21-25 8 NEC Infrastructure Investments with Funding Needs in FY21-25 16 Funding Needs beyond FY21-25 21 Project Information Appendix 22 Capital Renewal 22 Special Projects 152 Newarkiv Penn| NEC Station Capital Investment Plan: FY21-25 Letter from the Co-Chairs We are enduring the most difficult times any of our agencies have experienced. The COVID-19 pandemic has cost so much for Northeast Corridor stakeholders: fewer customers, lost revenue, and less certainty for our futures. Most grievously, we have lost staff members to the virus. Despite these hardships, our agencies and their employees have carried on, keeping systems running as safely as possible, in particular to support the movement of the essential workers who have kept our healthcare system and our economy as functional as possible. Although the pandemic has created tremendous uncertainty for our industry, it has not changed the imperative to bring the Northeast Corridor to a state of good repair and lay a foundation for growth once the current crisis eases and life returns to normal. Capital plans have always played—and will continue to play—a key role in advancing these goals, yet they also represent a snapshot in time and can be challenging to prepare under normal circumstances. This document, the FY21-25 NEC Capital Investment Plan, was developed during the first six months of the pandemic; as such, it reflects the Commission’s best available information during an extremely volatile and dynamic period where stakeholders have even less clarity than usual on what funding might be available to support our operations and capital programs. The Commission approved the Capital Investment Plan mindful of these uncertainties and will report adjustments to plan through its quarterly reporting process. It is our hope and expectation that the advancement of NEC capital investments will play an important role in supporting the industry’s recovery and energizing the regional economy. Looking beyond the five-year time frame, the Commission has been hard at work on CONNECT NEC 2035, a planning process that will provide a roadmap for implementing phase one (i.e., the first 15 years) of the Federal Railroad Administration’s long-term vision for the corridor established in the 2017 NEC FUTURE Record of Decision. Key to this planning process will be an unprecedented project delivery analysis—an assessment of the track outage and workforce requirements to build all identified infrastructure projects by 2035 while maintaining, at minimum, pre-COVID-19 service levels. When CONNECT NEC 2035 is completed by the fall of 2021, the Commission will begin using it as a roadmap for the annual NEC Capital Investment Plan. As these planning efforts progress and mature, much work remains to improve capital planning, reporting, and plan adherence at NEC stakeholder agencies, but the commitment to make those improvements remains strong. During these difficult times, Commission members are committed to working together and with Congress to maintain essential operations, spend capital dollars as efficiently as possible, and plan for our future. We look forward to continued partnership and brighter days to come. Ronald Batory Kevin S. Corbett Administrator, Federal Railroad Administration Executive Director, NJ TRANSIT Co-Chair, Northeast Corridor Commission Co-Chair, Northeast Corridor Commission Northeast Corridor Commission | 1 2 | NEC Capital Investment Plan: FY21-25 Introduction The Northeast Corridor Each day, the Northeast Corridor—both the NEC main line and connecting corridors to Harrisburg, PA; Spuyten Duyvil, NY; and Springfield, MA—hosts the passenger rail operations of eight commuter railroads and Amtrak’s intercity services. The 457-mile main line railroad still includes many bridges and tunnels that date back to the period between the Civil War and the New Deal. Located in the most densely populated region of the United States, the NEC is a vital transportation asset. Between fiscal years 2016 and 2019, the NEC hosted over 800,000 average daily trips. However, fiscal year 2020 presented significant challenges to its riders and operating agencies due to the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. Since March 2020, NEC commuter and intercity passenger rail, like other transportation modes across the United States, has experienced steep ridership declines as the nation used social-distancing, telework, and travel advisories to slow the spread of the disease. As a result of these measures, a global recession is on-going without a clear end in sight. Unemployment in the metro areas along the Northeast Corridor alone rose by 10 percentage points during the third quarter of federal fiscal year 2020 compared to the same period last year.1 When the economy returns to full strength in the coming years, the NEC rail system will continue to serve as a vital transportation asset and driver of economic growth. Capital investment in the NEC will ensure a well-functioning railroad to enable workers to commute to jobs, people to connect with family and friends, and the region to attract businesses in a globally competitive economy. 1 Local Area Unemployment Statistics, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2020 Northeast Corridor Commission | 3 The Northeast Corridor Commission Congress established the Northeast Corridor Commission to develop coordinated strategies for improving the Northeast’s core rail network in recognition of the inherent challenges of planning, financing, and implementing major infrastructure improvements that cross multiple jurisdictions. The expectation is that by coming together to take collective responsibility for the NEC, these disparate stakeholders will achieve a level of success that far exceeds the potential reach of any individual organization. The Commission is governed by a board comprised of one member from each of the NEC states (Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, and Maryland) and the District of Columbia; four members from Amtrak; and five members from the U.S. Department of Transportation. The Commission also includes non-voting representatives from freight railroads, states with connecting corridors, and several commuter operators in the region. The NEC Commuter and Intercity Rail Cost Allocation Policy In September 2015, the Commission adopted the NEC Commuter and Intercity Rail Cost Allocation Policy. The Policy outlines a partnership built on three pillars. First, it established a framework for allocating approximately $1.3 billion annually in shared operating costs and capital normalized replacement values among the NEC’s four right-of-way owners and nine passenger rail operators. The agencies’ financial obligations are calculated annually through the NEC Commission’s Cost Allocation Model and are based on agencies' relative use of NEC infrastructure. Right-of-way owners use agencies’ capital obligations, referred to as Baseline Capital Charges, to fund capital renewal investments associated with right-of-way basic infrastructure assets, such as track, structures, electric traction systems, and communication and signal systems. Second, the Policy established a framework for transparency, collaboration, and accountability, including a first-ever corridor-wide capital planning and reporting process. The NEC Capital Investment Plan is a key component of that NEC-wide process and is required by the most recent federal transportation law, Fixing America’s Surface Transportation (FAST) Act (49 U.S.C. §24904(a)(1)). The final pillar of the Policy outlines a stable federal partnership framework from the perspective of Amtrak, NEC states, and Commuter Authorities, which, if implemented, should provide dependable and adequate funding to help restore the NEC to a state-of-good-repair, beyond the vital funds appropriated by Congress annually. 4 | NEC Capital Investment Plan: FY21-25 The NEC Capital Investment Plan The NEC Capital Investment Plan (CIP) integrates NEC infrastructure investments planned by each NEC owner and operator over a five-year period into a single planning document to develop a complete picture of corridor activities. The plan combines anticipated investments based on available funding with capital investments that could occur with additional funding given available resources. Year One of