Railway improvements promise high price tag, huge benefits for Pennsylvania
By Christina Lengyel | The Center Square
(The Center Square) – Pennsylvania Rep. Chris Deluzio joined Massachusetts Sen. Edward Markey to introduce the All Aboard Act, a bill that would invest $200 billion in national railway infrastructure over the next five years.
The proposal would fund high speed rail, as well as expansion and improvement of existing tracks. It allocates funds toward electrification, safety, labor protections and rail worker training programs.
“The American people ought to have a rail system that is safe, gets folks quickly where they want to go, and keeps the economy moving — all while slashing road traffic,” said Deluzio, a Democrat who just won his second term in November representing the 17th congressional district in southwestern Pennsylvania.
The largest part of the bill’s price tag goes towards the future of passenger trains. It provides $80 billion to the Federal-State Partnership for Intercity Passenger Rail, $30 billion to the Consolidated Rail Infrastructure Safety Improvement program, $30 billion for Amtrak, and $10 billion for the Railroad Crossing Elimination program.
Current intercity rail in Pennsylvania includes Amtrak’s Keystone Service, which runs between New York City and Harrisburg through Philadelphia, and the Pennsylvanian service which runs from New York City to Pittsburgh through Philadelphia. Philadelphia’s 30th St. Station grants access to much of the East Coast through Amtrak’s Northeast Regional rail line, while Pittsburgh connects the state to the Midwest and beyond.
The Rail Passengers Association, who support the bill, say that Amtrak’s current system is “skeletal at best.” They hope to see the rail system more than double from 22,000 to 45,000 miles of tracks, a figure that would come close to mirroring the interstate highway system.
Improving safety is a high priority in Pennsylvania. For Deluzio, whose district borders Ohio and contains a large swath of the Pittsburgh metropolitan area, dangerous crossings are a major concern. The congressman has also been a vocal critic of rail companies like Norfolk Southern, whose derailment in East Palestine created an environmental disaster.
Reducing pollution from the rail industry is at the heart of the bill.
“Building an expansive, reliable, and electrified rail network across our nation would put us on a high-speed track to fend off the worst effects of the climate crisis,” said Markey.
Environmental groups supporting the bill not only hope to see the reduction of pollution from individual commuters on the roadway but also look to infrastructure updates that would electrify existing heavy polluting railyards.
Railyard pollution takes an especially large toll on rail workers and the people in surrounding communities, many of which are lower income and classified as environmental justice communities. The bill proposes $500 million in Clean Air Act grants and $50 million for an electrification fund.
Electrification means eliminating dangerous diesel exhaust. The International Agency for Research on Cancer classifies diesel exhaust as carcinogenic, while the Environmental Protection Agency says it is “likely carcinogenic.” Other known health impacts of air pollution include heart disease, asthma, neurotoxicity, immune dysfunction, and early death.
The All Aboard Act would also engage labor unions, including that of the threatened steel industry, which has been essential to western Pennsylvania’s cultural and economic fabric.
Carl Rosen, general president of the United Electrical, Radio & Machine Workers of America, said railroads “must do their part to make necessary investments required to clean up our communities and create good union jobs.”
