After years of advocacy, Rep. Courtney Breaks Ground on Connecticut River Bridge Replacement Project

NORWICH, CT - Today, Rep. Joe Courtney broke ground on a major construction project alongside Amtrak and federal and state officials to replace the 116-year-old Connecticut River Bridge. The new bridge between Old Saybrook and Old Lyme will allow Amtrak to build a modern and resilient new moveable bridge that significantly improves passenger and freight rail.

The groundbreaking comes after Rep. Courtney led years of advocacyto urge the federal government to deliver funding to rebuild the bridge. The construction is primarily funded by the federal infrastructure law which delivered an $826 million federal grant announcedin November 2023. Over the past three years, Courtney also secured an additional $130.4 million for planning and design of the project, as well as a commitmentfrom Amtrak to hire local workers to complete construction.

"Ever since the determination was made in 2006 that the bridge was structurally deficient, my office has been leading federal efforts to support construction of a safer and faster rail line for passengers and freight. Importantly, even before the federal infrastructure law, which is funding the new bridge, became law, my office secured a commitment from Amtrak that the bridge would be built under a Project Labor Agreement that guarantees our local workforce will execute construction. This means Connecticut's workers will benefit from the highest safety standards, good wages, and high-quality job training."

The existing bridge opened in 1907 and today serves more than 50 daily Amtrak Northeast Regional and Acela trains, CTrail Shore Line East service and freight trains. The unreliability of the aging bridge, due to its failure to open and close consistently, results in delays to rail and maritime traffic.

Amtrak will construct a new two-track bridge to replace the existing two-track bridge. The new moveable bridge will be located immediately south of the existing moveable bridge, featuring modern track, signal, catenary, power, communication and other supporting rail infrastructure. It is designed with a maximum operating speed of 70 mph, a 55% increase from today's maximum speed of 45 mph. Maritime navigation and safety will also improve due to additional vertical clearance compared with the existing bridge.

Over the Years: Rep. Courtney Leads Works to Rehabilitate Connecticut River Bridge

July 2020: Rep. Courtney sent a Congressional letter urging the Federal Railroad Administration to approve Amtrak's and Connecticut Department of Transportation's FY20 request for federal funding through the Federal State Partnership for the State of Good Repair program to support repairs to the Connecticut River Bridge project.

October 2020: After requesting that the Federal Railroad Administration fund this work, Rep. Courtney hosted a press conference with Senator Blumenthal to announce a $65.2 million federal grant through the Federal State Partnership for the State of Good Repair program to replace the Connecticut River Bridge between Old Saybrook and Old Lyme, CT that carries Amtrak and Shoreline East Trains.

June 2021: Rep. Courtney led a Congressional letter in support of a Project Labor Agreement (PLA) for construction on the CT River Bridge. As Courtney said, "a PLA can bring the benefit of a highly skilled, reliable workforce, with predictable wage rates and uniform training. It also fosters high quality job training and apprenticeships for young workers which is key to solving the "skills gap" challenge our nation faces."

June 2021:Amtrak responded to Rep. Courtney's letter and confirmed that they will be using a PLA for work on the Connecticut River Bridge project.

February 2022:After the passage of the federal infrastructure law, Rep. Courtney led a Congressional letter to the Federal Railroad Administration, Amtrak, the Northeast Corridor Commission, and the Connecticut Department of Transportation urging them to prioritize repairs to the Connecticut River Bridge as they review funding requests for the federal infrastructure law. In the letter, Rep. Courtney requests that the Connecticut River Bridge be included as a priority project.

March 2022: Rep. Courtney sent a Congressional letter to urge the Department of Transportation to approve Amtrak's and Connecticut Department of Transportation's FY21 request for additional funding through the Federal State Partnership for the State of Good Repair program.

August 2022: Rep. Courtney announced that Amtrak and Connecticut Department of Transportation had been awarded the requested $65.2 million grant from the federal infrastructure law to support the replacement of the existing Amtrak-owned Connecticut River Bridge between Old Saybrook and Old Lyme and support upgrades on the New Haven Line.

November 2023: Rep. Courtney applauds the $826 million Federal-State Partnership for Intercity Passenger Rail Northeast Corridor grant awarded by the Federal Railroad Administration, made possible by the federal infrastructure law.

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