The Port of Vancouver was named Monday among beneficiaries of Florida’s decision to turn down $2 billion for a new high-speed rail corridor connecting Tampa and Orlando International Airport.
U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood announced the reallocation of the $2 billion for 22 high-speed intercity passenger rail projects in 15 states, including $15 million for a Port of Vancouver project.
“This money puts people to work now and builds the high-speed rail corridor that connects our communities,” said Washington Gov. Chris Gregoire. “We are happy to put Florida’s rail money to work in our state.”
Last month, the state scored $145 million in federal high-speed rail funding that had been turned down by Ohio and Wisconsin.
That money included $10 million for 1,300 feet of new track in Vancouver.
Katie Odem, a communications specialist for the Port of Vancouver, said the $15 million grant will be invested in the port’s West Vancouver Freight Access project, a multi-phase effort to improve freight movement through the port and reduce congestion on the regional rail system.
The $15 million, along with $18.3 million in matching funds from the Port of Vancouver, will pay for a separate track for freight rail cars carrying shipments into and out of the port.
Odem said the project will reduce delay on the freight and passenger mainline by up to 40 percent while tripling the port’s rail volume.
Construction on the project is expected to start in 2013 and be completed by January 2016, Odem said.
“This award demonstrates how our partnership with WSDOT and BNSF Railway company will result in better rail connectivity for our entire region,” said Larry Paulson, the port’s executive director. “This funding will help construct a section of the port’s rail project that provides new rail access that will bring more jobs to Vancouver, and opens up a bottleneck that has caused congestion on a rail line that connects Chicago, Houston and the western seaboard.”
The $15 million brings the state’s share of high-speed-rail funding under the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act to $781 million. Construction on select projects will start this year; all projects funded by ARRA rail grants must be completed by 2017.
The state also plans to expand passenger rail service, including adding two daily round trips between Seattle and Portland for a total of six.
U.S. Sens. Patty Murray, D-Wash, and Maria Cantwell, D-Wash, issued statements in support of the Port of Vancouver project.
“I’m so glad that Washington state was awarded funding to help build the critical infrastructure that is needed for communities in Southwest Washington to compete in the 21st-century economy,” Murray said. “This project is especially important as the Port of Vancouver undergoes construction to expand and improve the efficiency of its freight operations.”
Cantwell said the project “is a major step forward in creating jobs and improving key transportation infrastructure in Southwest Washington to fuel economic growth. The Port of Vancouver’s freight access project is critical to eliminating points of congestion, expanding port access and creating family-wage jobs.”
