WASHINGTON — Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy celebrated Amtrak’s launch of next-generation high-speed Acela train sets by taking the inaugural ride from Washington, DC, to New York City.
Breitbart News was among the news outlets to join the secretary for the historic trip on the new train set, which can run at speeds of up to 160 miles per hour, while handling curves at up to 150 miles per hour. Speaking at a press conference at Union Station ahead of the departure, Duffy said, “It is a great day for an Acela-bration.”
“I don’t know who ordered it up, but the sun is shining, the sky is blue, the band is here — it’s a wonderful day for this launch,” he added.
In addition to the launch of the new train sets, the Department of Transportation (DOT) announced on Wednesday that the federal government will reclaim control of Union Station.
“I think the president has been pretty clear on what he wants for Union Station, for American travel, for train travel,” Duffy said at the departure press conference. “He wants Union Station to be beautiful again, he wants transit to be safe again, and he wants our nation’s capital to be great again, and today’s part of that.”
Deputy Secretary Steven Bradbury emphasized the DOT’s goals to return the station to “a stable financial footing” and “to address the rehabilitation needs of the station, and really do what Congress demanded we do, and take care of this beautiful historic building.”
After that, Bradbury said the administration also seeks to “set the foundation to open the doors to a beautiful expansion of the station in the future, probably through a P3 — a public-private partnership — with a beautiful new passenger concourse.”
After the press conference, reporters rushed onto the “Next-Gen” Acela for its maiden voyage to the Big Apple. Duffy joined the press as the train approached Philadelphia for about 30 minutes and took questions alongside Bradbury. Breitbart News asked Duffy how the next-gen Acela will benefit working-class Americans in particular.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy and Deputy Secretary Steven Bradbury speak to reporters during the next-gen Acela’s maiden voyage to New York City. Credit: Nick Gilbertson
Duffy emphasized that the fleet of Acela trains will eventually reach 28, up from the 15 currently in operation. The new sets notably allow for 27 percent greater seating capacity.
“So there’s 15 Acela trains now. We’re going to have 5 that are going to come online starting tomorrow, but we’re going to have 28 in total,” Duffy said. “So we’re going to have more sets with more frequent trips on the northeast corridor.”
“Expanding capacity, I think, is going to, again, allow for two things. One, I think with dynamic pricing, we’re going to be able to bring some of the prices down, make it more cost-effective for the traveling public… Because there’s more capacity, we think we can bring in more revenue for Amtrak,” he added. “So those two things — and again, it’s going to take us some time to figure out that dynamic pricing, but we think that’s going to be a great takeaway, by the way, a better riding experience for people.”
After the roughly 25-minute gaggle, reporters returned to their seats, and the train was soon in New York City right around 1:00 p.m. as scheduled.
The train pulled into Penn Station, where Duffy had notably pulled a development project from New York City’s Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA) over his lack of faith in the MTA’s ability to deliver. Duffy held a press conference alongside Bradbury and train expert Andy Byford, whom Duffy called “the train daddy,” in the entryway to the station, announcing a $43 million grant to improve it.
“Oftentimes, presidents wouldn’t engage in a project like this. You all are blessed to have a president who cares about the project and cares about the deliverable for New Yorkers,” Duffy said.
“We are proud to be announcing a $43 million grant to begin the process in regard to the solicitation for a master developer… We are going to move at the speed of Trump,” he added. “This is not going to be a 20-30 year project. This is not about a backroom, thinking about how we can spend money and develop plans, but never deliver. This is actually about: ‘How do we move this more quickly and more beautifully through the process so it’s not your grandkids that are going to enjoy the work we are doing now, you all are going to get to enjoy this great project?’”
Byford will lead the project for Amtrak.
“I’m so happy to be back in New York. This is where I want to be, and this is the project that I want to do,” Byford said.
“From today, firms interested in working on this project can officially start the process of becoming our master developer partner,” Byford went on to say. “Ladies and gentlemen, the steps to completely transform Penn Station start today, that process starts today — complete top-to-bottom modernization and transformation of Penn Station.”
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