Sens. Menendez, Booker vow to fight for more funding for infrastructure projects

U.S. Sens. Bob Menendez and Cory Booker are vowing to fight for billions of dollars more in funding for infrastructure projects in what's being considered a historic infrastructure plan for the state.

News 12 Staff

Apr 26, 2021, 4:25 PM

Updated 1,453 days ago

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U.S. Sens. Bob Menendez and Cory Booker are vowing to fight for billions of dollars more in funding for infrastructure projects in what's being considered a historic infrastructure plan for the state.
Their plan is being described as the nation's largest, single federal infrastructure investment in nearly a century. 
"This is a major moment in American history,” says Sen. Booker. “You may not see it that way but like days of old when we had a vision for air travel and the federal government made massive investments in airports across this country. This is like years ago."
It's a $17 billion, five-year capital plan that includes advancing the yearslong Gateway project, moving to a zero-emissions bus fleet, modernizing old train stations, rail bridges and more. 
"For several generations now, we have done nothing to improve or build upon or even to a large degree to maintain that infrastructure and as the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, I can tell you we cannot compete with countries like China and succeed in the global economy if we do not start making bold and strategic investments in our workforce and infrastructure,” says Sen. Menendez.
State Department of Transportation Commissioner Diane Gutierrez-Scaccetti describes the funding as the one-two punch transportation needs. New Jersey Transit CEO Kevin Corbett says it's critical. 
The $17 billion is hoped to be more of a long-term solution on top of President Joe Biden's $2 trillion American Rescue Plan.