The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials recently released a video recap of its annual Council on Rail Transportation meeting, held January 31 through February 3 in Washington, D.C.
[Above image by AASHTO]
Amit Bose (above), administrator of the Federal Railroad Administration, was one of the keynote speakers at that meeting, with Roger Harris – president of Amtrak – providing insight into the national passenger railroad operator’s expansion plans.
The annual AASHTO Rail Council meeting brings together state rail officials and key stakeholders from the rail industry, Congressional members, and partner organizations to address policy, regulatory, safety, operations, and investment issues in the development of a national freight and passenger rail system.
That meeting also examined the rail-focused portions of the $1.2 trillion Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, enacted in November 2021, and how that funding is furthering passenger and freight rail project developments.
“This is an exciting time for rail in light of IIJA funding,” noted FRA’s Bose in his remarks at the meeting.
“But we must make clear the urgency of the moment in terms of delivering on projects funded by those dollars we fought so hard to obtain,” he emphasized.
“We cannot have situations where we overpromise and then under-deliver – there is nothing worse for us than that. So set realistic [rail project] deadlines and expectations,” Bose said. “Shoot and aim high but, at the end of the day, make sure to meet those project deadlines.”
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