New York State will receive $18.5 million to relieve rail congestion in and around Syracuse, N.Y., an Amtrak station stop on right-of-way owned by CSX Corp.
The federal Department of Transportation will advance the money to its New York State counterpart to oversee reconfiguration of tracks and an upgrade of signal systems, to begin in 2015. New York State will contribute $4.6 million of its own funds to the project.
Work will include upgrading and some expansion of train sidings to alleviate conflicts between Amtrak Empire Service trains and CSX operations, addressing needs of Syracuse Station and a nearby CSX freight yard. The new layout also aims to increase speeds faster than the current 30 mph limit, according to local media.
Syracuse Station hosts four Amtrak trains per day in each direction, including the long-distance train Lake Shore Limited.