News

October 18, 2009

Passenger rail gets plug from Kanjorski

He took opportunity to push project when U.S. Secretary of Transportation visited Friday.

By Andrew M. Seder aseder@timesleader.com
Times Leader Staff Writer
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U.S. Rep. Paul E. Kanjorski and U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood might have been on an airplane, but the congressman had passenger rail service on his mind.

And he wanted to make sure his fellow traveler had it on his, too.

The two shared a 45-minute flight from Washington to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton International Airport on Friday. While en route, Kanjorski, who spent 14 years in the House of Representatives with LaHood, handed the secretary a letter asking for the proposed rail line from Scranton to Hoboken, N.J., to receive “full and fair consideration” in the next round of federal Recovery Act funding.

Phase 2 of the project would lay rail lines from East Stroudsburg east into New Jersey, where it would connect with existing rail line. The cost of this phase is estimated at $410 million.

The Federal Railroad Administration is reviewing applications for funding, including the one filed by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation for phase 2 assistance.

Kanjorski explained the problems with congestion along many Northeastern Pennsylvania roadways, including Interstates 80 and 81.

“The Commonwealth’s highways and bridges are near capacity, and it is becoming exceedingly costly to expand and maintain large interstates and bridges,” Kanjorski wrote in the letter. “High-speed rail systems can significantly improve the quality of our environment and quality of life for residents.”

PennDOT estimates that if the project receives full funding, it can restore rail service by 2013 and create more than 4,200 construction jobs in the process.

LaHood was at the airport Friday near Avoca to discuss more than $13 million in federal stimulus funding to construct a new air traffic control tower. But he spent some time during the press conference talking about the rail conversation he had with Kanjorski, even holding up the letter he received on the flight. LaHood said that “toward the end of the year we’ll be making some announcements” regarding the rail line.

When PennDOT made the application for funding consideration last month, Gov. Ed Rendell said, “The applications we’ve submitted prove that Pennsylvania stands ready to address transportation challenges with forward thinking and community support. Pennsylvanians want efficient transportation that reduces congestion and is better for the environment; high-speed rail is what we need to meet these demands.”

LaHood praised Rendell’s efforts to improve transportation and infrastructure needs for the state.

He said Pennsylvania “gets it.”

Kanjorski, D-Nanticoke, and U.S. Sens. Bob Casey, D-Scranton, and Arlen Specter, D-Philadelphia, have been fighting for funding for the rail service from Scranton to metropolitan New York for several years.

Kanjorski said that things look better now for the project to move forward than ever before.

Kanjorski pointed out that the Northeastern Pennsylvania congressional delegation contains all Democrats.

With Vice President Joe Biden being a Scranton native and having close ties to the Pennsylvania delegation, there’s another ally in the plan’s corner.

He also mentioned that President Barack Obama has been willing to create a network of high-speed passenger rail systems, and this would help meet the president’s goal.

“We have the stars aligning. This is our time,” Kanjorski said.

U.S. Rep. Paul Kanjorski said the time is right for a Scranton-Hoboken, N.J. rail line.

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