Elected officials in helmets and yellow jackets gathered in New Jersey on Monday for the ceremonial launch of a massive boring machine that in days will begin drilling through the solid rock of the Palisades Cliffs in New Jersey, the initial phase of the Hudson Tunnel Project from New Jersey to New York Penn Station.
The new tunnel is just one part of a massive infrastructure project designed to ease the congestion of trains traveling in and out of New York City.
The existing tunnel was built in 1910.
The project will add two tunnels under the Hudson River for Amtrak and NJ Transit trains, which transport hundreds of thousands of commuters daily between New York and New Jersey. Its estimated cost is $16 billion, and completion is projected for 2035.
Under President Joe Biden, the Department of Transportation authorized $11 billion in grants and financing for the Hudson Tunnel portion of the project.
In October 2025, White House Office of Management and Budget Director Russell Vought announced it was freezing federal funding for the project over "unconstitutional DEI principles."
But, as Nicholas Zifcak reports for The Epoch Times, New York and New Jersey sued the federal government, which was forced to reinstate funding on June 29 after U.S. District Judge Jeannette Vargas ruled Vought's move unlawful. The federal government initially appealed, but on Sept. 17 the Department of Transportation dropped the appeal.
