Statement attributable to Dr. Sam Bowden Akbari, Director of Communications at RPA.

Good morning, GDC Board. My name is Dr. Sam Bowden Akbari, and I have the pleasure of serving as the Director of Communications at Regional Plan Association or RPA. RPA is the nation’s first metropolitan planning organization who, since 1922, has produced 4 regional plans for the NY metro region. Both our 3rd and 4th regional plans called for the work you’re dedicated to everyday, namely advancing the Gateway Program especially the Hudson River Tunnel project to expand capacity and provide systematic resiliency and redundancy along the Northeast Corridor line.

A major milestone in this journey has been the long-awaited Full Funding Grant Agreement, which was signed last month locking in an additional $6.8 billion of federal funding for the nation’s most urgent infrastructure project. This is the culmination of years, if not decades, of hard work and cooperation – from partners and stakeholders on both sides of the Hudson River and in Washington, D.C. Building a new rail tunnel under the Hudson and refurbishing the existing North River Tunnel will bring transformative environmental, economic and social benefits to the region and the nation. We extend our thanks to President Biden, Senator Schumer and the other elected leaders in New York and New Jersey who have played such a strong role in advancing this milestone.

We would also like to extend our heart-felt thanks to outgoing founding CEO of the GDC, Kris Kullori. At an extraordinary speed, he scaled up the staff, initiated over $1 billion in contracts for early work, and secured the largest federal grant for a mass transit project in modern history. It was because of his tenacious leadership and unrelenting commitment to this work that the federal government could allocate the historic Full Funding Grant Agreement to a team that has proven its mettle.

With the funding locked in, we look forward to this next phase of the Hudson Tunnel Project: the point of no return, the construction phase. A key piece of this phase is the awarding of the Palisades Tunnel Project contract for the first mile of the Hudson Tunnel in New Jersey. This means that, after today, nearly half the contracts that make up the Hudson River Tunnel project will be under construction. As the boring machine break earth, there is no turning back. This is truly a moment to savor and celebrate, so I congratulate you all and our region.”