B&P Tunnel Replacement Program gets state funding boost and visit from President Biden

The Baltimore and Potomac Tunnel (B&P Tunnel) Replacement Program advanced on Jan. 30 with a new funding commitment from the state of Maryland, a project labor agreement (PLA) between Amtrak and North America’s Building Trades Unions (NABTU) and a visit by one of the nation’s biggest rail fans: President Joe Biden.

President Biden, with a backdrop of an Amtrak Acela train and tracks leading to the North Portal of the B&P Tunnel, offered a reminder of his million-miles of Amtrak travel, including “a thousand trips” through the 150-year-old tunnel and noted the project that will replace the tunnel is “the beginning of having a 21st century rail system that’s been so long overdue in this country.”

President Biden has not only been a rail passenger through the tunnel but toured it in the 1980s, where he shared his thoughts on the tunnel’s condition: “You wonder how in the hell it’s still standing.”

“It’s not just Amtrak. I know how important this tunnel is to commuter rail and MARC rail back and forth to Washington, and I know how much it matters to the entire Northeast Corridor from here to Boston. That it matters a great deal,” said President Biden.

Amtrak and the Maryland Department of Transportation (MDOT) will work together to replace the tunnel, which Amtrak calls the biggest passenger rail bottleneck between Washington, D.C., and New Jersey. The project includes modernizing a four-mile section of track and will see the current B&P Tunnel replaced with two new high-capacity tubes for electrified trains, new roadway and rail bridge, new rail systems and track and a new ADA-accessible West Baltimore MARC station. The new tunnel will be known as the Frederick Douglass Tunnel after the abolitionist leader and writer.

The existing tunnel suffers from several age-related issues, including excessive water infiltration, a deteriorating structure and right curvature, along with steep inclines where trains can only travel at 30 mph. These all contribute to chronic delays that impact 10 percent of weekday trains.

Funding for the project

Amtrak estimates the B&P Tunnel Replacement Program costs to be approximately $6 billion. The Biden Administration says the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act could contribute up to $4.7 billion toward the project, which also received $44 million through the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act for preliminary engineering and permitting.

Amtrak intends to secure a gran under the Federal Railroad Administration’s (FRA) Federal-State Partnership for Intercity Passenger Rail Grant Program (Partnership Program), where the federal share can not exceed 80 percent of the project cost. This would require the B&P Tunnel Replacement Program to have $1.2 billion in match funding available.

The state of Maryland intends to commit $450 million to support the program, including the construction of the Frederick Douglass Tunnel, and Amtrak intends to commit $750 million toward the project.

“Investment in transit infrastructure is fundamental to expanding economic opportunities and promoting more reliable, customer-focused service to Marylanders,” said Maryland Gov. Wes Moore. “The Frederick Douglass Tunnel project stands as more evidence of our commitment to modernize and transform transit throughout the state.”

At the end of December 2022, FRA made nearly $9 billion in Partnership Program grants for the NEC available. This portion of the grant program will be awarded to projects on the NEC Project Inventory. The B&P Tunnel Replacement Program is the first project listed under major backlog projects.

“Replacing this Civil War-era B&P tunnel will nearly triple train capacity on this critical section of the Northeast Corridor for the nine million annual Amtrak and MARC customers who rely on this vital connection,” said Amtrak CEO Stephen Gardner. “As we work with Maryland and our labor partners to deliver the new Frederick Douglass Tunnel, we are grateful for essential funding the Biden Administration has designated for this project, made possible by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and the strong support of our many federal, state and local partners.”

Amtrak anticipates launching early construction activities this year following receipt of new federal funding.

Amtrak – NABTU labor agreement

Amtrak and the Baltimore-DC Building and Construction Trades Council, a local affiliate of NABTU, signed a new PLA to cover the replacement of the Warwick Bridge, which is the first phase of the B&P Tunnel Replacement Program, that can serve as a model for other Amtrak projects. It is a collective bargaining agreement that will govern terms and conditions of employment for workers constructing the bridge replacement.

This PLA is the first under a 2021 Memorandum of Understanding between Amtrak and NABTU, which Amtrak says will ensure three key points:

• Amtrak and NABTU will not face labor-related delays in the planning and contracting of major projects
• Contractors and subcontractors share Amtrak’s commitment to paying fair wages and benefits
• Amtrak and NABTU can move forward with Bipartisan Infrastructure Law funded projects with efficient labor-management relations.

“NABTU is proud to partner with Amtrak to ensure the major civil engineering projects under its control are performed under collective bargaining agreements, with NABTU’s councils and affiliates to ensure the highly skilled men and women of North America’s Building Trades construct the critical infrastructure necessary for America’s rail system. There is no better place to start our partnership than with the much-needed B&P Tunnel replacement program,” said NABTU President Sean McGarvey.