Governor Wolf Joins President Biden to Celebrate 50th Anniversary of Amtrak and Call for Critical Infrastructure Investments

Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf today joined President Joe Biden at William H. Gray III 30th Street Station in Philadelphia to celebrate Amtrak’s 50th anniversary and to highlight the need for critical rail and public transit infrastructure investments.

“Our nation’s infrastructure, from our rails and ports to our roads and bridges, ensure that our economy remains strong, that important products get to their destinations, and ensure that people get to work, school, appointments, and even vacations. We must take bold actions to invest in our infrastructure to ensure that all forms of transportation remain strong and reliable for years to come,” Gov. Wolf said. “President Biden, a loyal Amtrak passenger for decades, recognizes the importance of our railways. I’m pleased to celebrate Amtrak’s milestone anniversary today and I want to thank Amtrak workers for ensuring that Pennsylvania’s passengers are traveling its lines safely every day.”

The president’s American Jobs Plan would modernize public transit by replacing thousands of buses and rail cars, repair hundreds of stations, and expand transit and rail into new communities and specifically invest $80 billion to address Amtrak’s repair backlog, modernize the high traffic Northeast Corridor, improve existing corridors, connect more communities, and more.

Governor Wolf strongly supports President Biden’s bold, comprehensive American Jobs Plan, which includes many of the same priorities that the governor has focused on throughout his administration.

Pennsylvania has long relied on rail infrastructure to connect people and goods across the state and country. Pennsylvania ranks first in the country in the number of operating railroads (65) and also ranks near the top in total track mileage (more than 5,600 miles), according to the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT). During Fiscal Year 2018-19, Amtrak passenger rail service provided more than 1.5 million trips on the Keystone Corridor between Harrisburg and Philadelphia and more than 213,000 trips on the Pennsylvanian, which provides rail service between Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, according to PennDOT.

-via Press Release

This article was posted on: April 30, 2021