After meeting Trump, officials optimistic Amtrak Gateway project will happen

President Donald Trump seemed positive about Amtrak's massive Gateway project but made no commitments during a nearly hourlong meeting with members of Congress and the governors of New Jersey and New York on Thursday, attendees said.

The White House said in a statement afterward the president appreciated a chance to hear details about the program.

"The expense of the program, which approaches $30 billion, will require a strong partnership to deliver these nine projects in a cost-effective manner by streamlining the permitting process, using innovative procurement techniques, and being creative in the funding and financing," the statement said.

Trump specifically asked about the "design-build" process New York used in replacing the Tappan Zee Bridge, which expedited construction by not having separate bids for designing the process and then building it.

"I'm optimistic this is going to move forward. It has to," said Rep. Josh Gottheimer, D-Wyckoff.

Govs. Chris Christie and Andrew Cuomo laid out the scope of the project, which eventually would involve having two extra tracks between Newark and New York City and expanded capacity in Penn Station, according to Rep. Albio Sires, D-West New York.

Trump "certainly seemed willing to try to help and get these projects going," Sires said. "He said he would do everything he could, just short of a 'yes' commitment." 

Striking a more skeptical tone was Sen. Cory Booker, D-Newark.

"President Trump has made plenty of promises on infrastructure which so far have fallen flat," Booker said in a statement. "It’s time for him to step up and commit to real investment in Gateway in order to strengthen our region’s surface transportation networks, bolster our economy, and boost job creation."

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The Amtrak-led project includes replacing a Hudson River tunnel and a Meadowlands bridge that are each more than 100 years old and frequently cause delays on the Northeast Corridor. The two-track tunnel was heavily damaged during Superstorm Sandy in 2012, and is projected to fail in the coming decade.

“We had an opportunity to lay out everything for the president, what letters we need the approvals, the money, and the necessity: Something has to be done, urgently, primarily because of Sandy. And we stressed it could happen again, the existing tunnels could become unusable, given Harvey and Irma and what else is happening,” said Rep. Frank Pallone, D-Monmouth County.

Failure of the tunnel would disrupt rail travel on the Northeast corridor between Boston and Washington, and possibly choke the region with traffic as rail commuters who rely on NJ Transit have to find other ways into and out of Manhattan.

The Trump administration has talked positively about the extensive project, with Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao telling Booker at a hearing in May that the president understands the project's importance because he is a New Yorker.

Questions about the administration's support for the new tunnel were raised in June when the U.S. Department of Transportation formally withdrew from the board of a corporation set up to spearhead the project. Others represented on the board were Amtrak and New Jersey and New York officials.

In the White House statement, Chao was praised for working to expedite permits for the tunnel, which the administration said took about half the time it would otherwise have taken to get environmental clearance.

"The President and his Administration remain committed to creating a robust infrastructure package that will modernize and transform our nation’s infrastructure," the statement said.

While Trump has spoken about launching a massive infrastructure program, his focus has been on ways to encourage private investment into public works projects, something Amtrak's outgoing CEO said would not work with the tunnel.

Attendees said Trump asked about the possibility of a private partnership, and was told that was not possible because the tunnel would be used by public rail agencies.

Details on funding the project have not advanced beyond an agreement reached last year that the states would share half the cost, while the federal government and Amtrak would cover the other half.

The first piece of the project likely to advance is replacement of the Portal Bridge over the Hackensack River, which swings open to allow for shipping traffic but often gets stuck, causing delays for Amtrak and NJ Transit trains.

Christie told Trump that project is ready to go to bid, once the DOT signs off, Sires said.

Amtrak has also been regularly closing one of the tracks in the tunnel for maintenance during weekends, reducing the number of trains that can run.

A bill the House could pass this week would provide $900 million to help start the project, and the House rejected an attempt by conservatives on Wednesday night to strip out the funding.

A similar bill in the Senate has less funding, and it's not clear what Congress will end up doing.

During debate on Wednesday, Rep. Ted Budd, R-N.C., criticized New Jersey for seeking expanded federal help for the project after Christie in 2010 canceled a tunnel project because New Jersey would have been responsible for cost overruns.

"If this earmark stands, then we send a clear message to the states: Shortchange your infrastructure, and Washington will bail you out," Budd said.