NEW JERSEY (PIX11) -- After years of delays, construction on the Hudson River Tunnel portion of the Gateway Project finally got underway earlier this month.
Groundbreaking was held on the New York side for the new tunnel and to rehabilitate the old one. A similar ceremony was held Thursday on the New Jersey side.
White House officials are said to consider this the most important infrastructure project in the entire country. The equipment is in place, and the digging will soon begin.
New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy was joined by officials from Washington, New York, Amtrak and New Jersey Transit for a ceremonial groundbreaking. Shovels were dug into the ground to mark the beginning of construction on the Tonnelle Avenue Bridge, an integral part of the project before tunnels were created underground.
“This is a great day for New Jersey, our region and all of America,” Murphy said.
Construction on the much-needed tunnel beneath the Hudson River has been on the drawing boards for years, but it finally got the go-ahead earlier this month when President Joe Biden released the funds to build it.
"For years, this project has existed on paper, on computer screens as a proposal or as an aspiration. But today, we’re taking a major step by transporting this from a vision to reality,” Murphy noted.
The Gateway project will create nine miles of tracks connecting New York and New Jersey and rehabilitate the existing tunnel, which opened in 1910 and sustained severe damage from Superstorm Sandy 11 years ago.
The roadway bridge for which ground was broken will overpass heavily traveled Tonnelle Avenue and make way for the new tunnels beneath.
Director of New York State Operations Kathryn Garcia noted that the project will benefit commuters more than anyone else.
"We are going to create an enormous number of middle-class jobs, 70,000 middle-class jobs," Garcia said.
Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and former President Donald Trump canceled previous attempts to resume work on the vitally needed crossing. Speakers credited Biden with finally giving it the green light.
"The President personally cares about getting this done. He's approved 3.8 billion dollars toward rails, 7 billion on the transit side. With that kind of support, we know this project is going to be a success," Deputy Transportation Commissioner Polly Trottenberg said.
After years of delays and political in-fighting, the project is finally underway, with the government picking up 70% of the 16 billion dollar tab. But it will be at least 12 years before the project is completed.
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