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Gov.
George E. Pataki has announced his strong support for the $2.9 billion
Rebuild and Renew New York Transportation Bond Act of 2005 that will be
put before voters when they go to the polls this November.
The
Governor called the Transportation Bond Act a comprehensive and
fiscally responsible plan that will make critical improvements to New
York’s transportation infrastructure, create more than 120,000
jobs, and promote smart economic growth and energy conservation.
“The Transportation Bond Act will help ensure that we continue to
provide a safe and reliable transportation network for New Yorkers all
across the State -- from New York City to Buffalo and from Plattsburgh
to Long Island,” Governor Pataki said. “The investments the
Bond Act will allow us to make today will help meet New York's
transportation needs, create new jobs, and keep our economy growing in
the future. Whether commuting to work or school, or traveling with
families and friends on leisure, the Bond Act will help support a
strong, safe and reliable mass transit, roads and bridges
network.”
“Our
transportation network is second to none. Making investments in our
transportation infrastructure today, is a critical part of our effort
to ensure New York’s competitive edge for the future,” the
Governor said. “Passage of the Bond Act will help ensure that New
Yorkers continue to benefit from a first-rate transportation system
that is safe, promotes economic development, enhances reliability,
protects our environment and reduces our dependence on gasoline and
diesel fuel.”
The
Transportation Bond Act is part of a five-year, $35.9 billion
transportation capital program that the Governor and legislative
leaders agreed to on July 13, 2005. The plan includes $17.96 billion
for the State Department of Transportation (DOT) and $17.99 billion for
the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA). The $2.9 billion Bond
Act portion of that funding also would be evenly distributed with both
DOT and the MTA receiving $1.45 billion each. The Bond Act provides for
improvements to roads and bridges, transit systems, the state’s
freight and passenger rail network, airports, canals, and port
facilities. Direct investment from the Bond Act will create more than
120,000 jobs.
The
Bond Act includes $1.139 billion to help support the largest DOT
highway and bridge capital construction program in history, with
capital investments growing from $1.75 billion in 2005 to $2.158
billion by 2010. The Bond Act supported capital program will enable DOT
to improve and maintain the state’s existing highway and bridge
infrastructure, ensuring it remains sound, while also financing a
series of major highway projects of statewide significance.
These
include the continued conversion of State Route 17 into Interstate 86
across the Southern Tier; construction of the U.S. Route 219 freeway in
Erie and Cattaraugus counties; construction of a four-lane Fort Drum
connector roadway that will link Interstate 81 directly with one of
America’s largest military installations; capital improvements to
the Cross Westchester Expressway (Interstate 287) in Westchester
County; interchange improvements on the Van Wyck Expressway in Queens;
and border crossing improvements in northern and western New York. The
Governor noted that as energy prices rise in the wake of Hurricane
Katrina, which struck the Gulf Coast on August 28th, New York’s
proposed Transportation Bond Act also includes significant funding for
projects designed to help reduce our dependence on gasoline and diesel
fuel. More than 60 percent – or $1.77 billion – of Bond Act
projects support energy-efficient mass transportation, enhance the
movement of freight by rail to divert it from trucks, improve the
state’s bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure, and expand
programs that mitigate fuel-wasting highway congestion.
The
MTA will receive $1.45 billion from the bond act, consisting of $450
million for core MTA infrastructure improvements and $1 billion for new
system expansion projects in the New York metropolitan area, which
include $450 million for the construction of a Second Avenue Subway
from 125th Street to the Financial District in Lower Manhattan, $450
million for the improvement of rail access on Manhattan’s East
Side with a link between the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) main line and
Grand Central Terminal, and $100 million for a new rail line linking
Lower Manhattan with John F. Kennedy International Airport in Queens.
The
Bond Act will also help secure more than $5.1 billion in federal
transportation aid during the next five years, consisting of $4 billion
in federal transit aid for the MTA’s East Side Access and 2nd
Avenue subway, and $1.1 billion in federal highway aid.
Other Bond Act programs include:
$50
million for other transit systems to enhance public transportation
services in communities outside the New York metropolitan area. Funding
will cover the incremental cost of purchasing hybrid-electric,
compressed natural gas, or other alternate fuel buses instead of
traditional diesel technology, helping to expand the State’s
efforts to improve air quality by financing approximately 250
clean-fuel vehicles, the majority of which will be hybrid-electric
transit buses. Projects utilizing $40 million have been identified and
municipalities will have the opportunity to apply for the remaining $10
million;
$135
million for railroads and port facilities, with projects geared towards
modernizing rail tracks and clearances, constructing intermodal
facilities such as the planned Pilgrim Intermodal Facility in the Town
of Islip, Suffolk County, that will reduce diesel truck dependence,
encourage the energy efficient movement of goods, and improve
inter-city rail transportation. Projects utilizing $54 million have
been identified and railroads and ports will have the opportunity to
apply for the remaining $81 million;
$76
million to make infrastructure, security, and business improvements at
many of New York’s smaller general aviation airports. Projects
utilizing $10.2 million have been identified and aviation facilities
will have the opportunity to apply for the remaining $65.8 million;
$65
million for congestion-reducing intelligent transportation systems,
technology that makes highway traffic move efficiently by monitoring
it, minimizing delays, and providing real-time condition reports to
travelers and businesses; and
$50
million to preserve and rehabilitate New York’s historic canal
system and construct new bicycle and pedestrian lanes and trails.
According to Federal Highway Administration methodology, the Bond Act
will create more than an estimated 120,000 jobs in the highway
construction industry, with businesses who supply it, and across the
general economy, which benefits when workers in the industry and
related businesses spend their wages on goods and services. 9-20-05
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