In Construction
The two new tubes under the Hudson River—the Hudson River Tunnel—are estimated to be complete in 2035. Then the existing North River Tunnel will be rehabilitated one tube at a time, estimated to be finished in 2038.
Full Funding Grant Agreement with FTA signed in July 2024. As of December 2024, seven of ten contract packages for HTP are now either in construction or active procurement.
GDC to award Manhattan Tunnel contract package in early 2025.
Amtrak, Gateway Development Commission, U.S. DOT Federal Railroad Administration, U.S. DOT Federal Transit Administration, NJ TRANSIT, Port Authority of New York and New Jersey
Amtrak, U.S. DOT FTA Capital Investment Grant (CIG) Program, U.S. DOT FRA Federal-State Partnership for Intercity Passenger Rail Program, U.S. DOT Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity Program, U.S. DOT MEGA Grant Program, U.S. DOT Build America Bureau (BAB) Railroad Rehabilitation and Improvement Financing (RRIF) loans
The HTP will improve reliability, resiliency, and redundancy in this critical section of Amtrak’s Northeast Corridor (NEC). At present, approximately 450 Amtrak and NJ TRANSIT trains pass through the NRT on a typical weekday, servicing nearly 200,000 daily passenger trips across the Hudson River. With such a high volume of rail traffic, the operational flexibility the HTP will provide is crucial not only to rail service, but also to the mobility and economic vitality of both the region and the nation as a whole.
The NRT was built by the Pennsylvania Railroad and completed in 1910. The tunnel consists of two, single-track, electrified tubes, which serve as the only passenger rail connections between Manhattan and New Jersey and the rest of the NEC. In October 2012, the tunnel was inundated with millions of gallons of salt water during Superstorm Sandy, leaving behind corrosive chemicals which continue to degrade the concrete tunnel liner, bench walls, and other systems that support Amtrak and NJ TRANSIT train operations.
A Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) for the HTP was prepared by the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), Port Authority of NY & NJ, and NJ TRANSIT, and a Record of Decision (ROD) issued in 2021.
In 2022, the Gateway Development Commission (GDC)—a partnership among Amtrak, the State of New York and the State of New Jersey—assumed the role of Project Sponsor for the HTP, and in 2023, early construction works began on both sides of the Hudson River. In New Jersey, overhead bridge and utility relocations commenced at Tonnelle Avenue in North Bergen, and in New York, the construction of Hudson Yards Concrete Casing (HYCC-3) began in Manhattan. The first major civil construction project of the HTP, Hudson River Ground Stabilization (HRGS), kicked off in May 2024.
In July 2024, with state and local partners, Amtrak supported final agreements to fully fund the project, including the GDC’s signature for a Full Funding Grant Agreement (FFGA) with the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) ($6.9 billion), Railroad Rehabilitation and Improvement Financing loans from the Build America Bureau ($4.1 billion), and a Federal-State Partnership NEC grant with the FRA ($3.8 billion).
For additional information about the Hudson Tunnel Project, email us at [email protected] to connect with a member of the project team.
