By: Jaenney Lee

Edited by: Eleanor Bergstein and Chloe Shah

The Infrastructure Investments and Jobs Act (IIJA), known as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL), was signed into law by President Biden in November of 2021. The introduction of such legislation stemmed from the President’s plan to rebuild the “crumbling infrastructure” of America and hence has been negotiated between Congressional Representatives from both parties; it is significant due to its bipartisanism, and that it is an introduction of new development in the United States. This act explains that cities, towns, and villages across the United States will receive the funds necessary for their infrastructure thanks to this historic legislation. When it was first introduced, the legislation said that it would [1]:

Deliver clean water to all American families and eliminate the nation’s lead service lines.
Ensure every American has access to reliable high-speed internet.
Repair and rebuild our roads and bridges with a focus on climate change mitigation, resilience, equity, and safety for all users.
Improve transportation options for millions of Americans and reduce greenhouse emissions through the largest investment in public transit in U.S. history.
Upgrade our nation’s airports and ports to strengthen our supply chains and prevent disruptions that have caused inflation. This will improve U.S. competitiveness, create more and better jobs at these hubs, and reduce emissions.
Make the largest investment in passenger rail since the creation of Amtrak.
Build a national network of electric vehicle (EV) chargers.
Upgrade our power infrastructure to deliver clean, reliable energy across the country and deploy cutting-edge energy technology to achieve a zero-emissions future.
Make our infrastructure resilient against the impacts of climate change, cyber-attacks, and extreme weather events.
Deliver the largest investment in tackling legacy pollution in American history by cleaning up Superfund and brownfield sites, reclaiming abandoned mines, and capping orphaned oil and gas wells.

The overall goal of this legislation was to improve the infrastructure of the country, which would have a positive impact on both the economy and the job market. It is also said that the legislation will help ease the inflationary pressures and add “1.5 million jobs per year” for the next ten years. Due to its benefits for a variety of thepublic, most Americans approve of this bill. It is primarily due to its strong bipartisan support to include transportation improvements such as road, bridge and port updates, that the bill is highly supported by the public. Funding environment-friendly legislation is also popular as this aspect was dropped from the legislation previously. Both Republicans and Democrats favor the inclusion of funding for the elderly in the infrastructure bill, making the law itself easier to implement with the large support across the nation.[3]

Now, two years after the bipartisan infrastructure bill was signed into law, the Biden administration announced their advanced vision for ‘World Class Passenger Rail,’ which states:

$16.4 Billion from Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to Repair and Replace Critical Rail Infrastructure Along Northeast Corridor to Provide Faster and More Reliable Passenger Rail Experience, Create More than One Hundred Thousand Construction Jobs.

This particular announcement narrowed down their focus for the next few months, within the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, to transportation. This aspect is number six of the ten goals the bill proposed when it was first introduced in November 2021. Biden highlights this progress as part of “Bidenomics,” as the bill is considered the Biden administration’s core strategy to boost the economy. This investment would be the largest investment in passenger rail since the creation of Amtrak, which included a $66 billion total investment in railways. The $16.5 billion funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law will be used for 25 passenger rail projects on Amtrak’s Northeast Corridor.[4] The official announcement was made by President Biden in Bear, Delaware, on Monday November 6, 2023 where he mentioned that it is not possible for “the leading country in the world to have a second-rate infrastructure.”[5] Specifically, the investments announced are projected to rebuild tunnels and bridges that are over 100 years old. This would improve the tracks, power systems, signals, stations, and other infrastructure in order to enhance the rail system overall. The objectives of future projects are to speed up travel times on railroads and reduce delays. Addressing such aged infrastructures and planning strategies would ensure an improvement in the national rail network.

Since part of the goal of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill is to create jobs, the particular announcement in enhancing the rail tracks will support over 100,000 well-paying construction jobs and advance Gateway Program Projects.[6] The announcement states an agreement between Amtrak and North America’s Building Trades Unions (NAMBTU) that discusses topics such as payment benefits, working conditions, and enhancement of diversity and veteran hiring in the construction trades. The agreement allows the contractors and subcontractors to pay fair wages and benefit the workers. As the Biden Administration is investing a huge portion of the budget for Amtrak and NABTU to continue their projects through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill, the funding will incentivize them to engage in effective labor-management relations by promoting a strong workforce pipeline to prevent disruptions. In addition to ensuring safe working conditions, Amtrak is investing more than $50 million in local workforce development and community investments. They plan to include pre-apprenticeship and apprenticeship programs to allow local workers in West Baltimore to access these jobs.[4]

Moreover, these sentiments tie in with the economic objective of the bill – as the investments will upgrade infrastructures of the rail system, they will simultaneously modernize and strengthen the way of transportation to produce fewer emissions. Changing the methods of transportation and lowering its emissions and hence reducing greenhouse emissions was also one of the main goals of this bill. The recent statement coincides with increased passenger rail demand along the Northeast Corridor (NEC), with Amtrak ridership this summer approaching pre-pandemic levels.[4]

The Bipartisan Infrastructure law, introduced two years ago, is taking new steps in support from the Biden Administration through the new rail project funding. It is projected to not only enhance the quality and quantity of transportation services across the nation, but also enhance the economy and provide job opportunities. The bipartisan nature of the law allows the bill to gain immense support from the majority of the public.

Notes

“Bipartisan Infrastructure Law Second Anniversary: Historic Legislation’s Impact for Municipalities.”
The White House. 2021. “Fact Sheet: The Bipartisan Infrastructure Deal | the White House.” The White House. The White House. November 6, 2021.
“Views on the Infrastructure Bill - AP-NORC.”
The White House. 2023. “FACT SHEET: President Biden Advances Vision for World Class Passenger Rail by Delivering Billions in New Funding | the White House.”
Lebowitz, Megan, and Monica Alba. 2023. “Biden Touts ‘Bidenomics’ in a Speech Announcing New Rail Project Funding.”
President Biden Advances Vision for World Class Passenger Rail with $16 Billion Investment in America’s Busiest Corridor | FRA.”

Bibliography

“Bipartisan Infrastructure Law Second Anniversary: Historic Legislation’s Impact for Municipalities.” 2023. National League of Cities. November 6, 2023.

Lebowitz, Megan, and Monica Alba. 2023. “Biden Touts ‘Bidenomics’ in a Speech Announcing New Rail Project Funding.” NBC News. NBC News. November 6, 2023.

President Biden Advances Vision for World Class Passenger Rail with $16 Billion Investment in America’s Busiest Corridor | FRA.” 2023. Dot.gov. 2023.

‌The White House. 2021. “Fact Sheet: The Bipartisan Infrastructure Deal | the White House.” The White House. The White House. November 6, 2021.

The White House. 2023. “FACT SHEET: President Biden Advances Vision for World Class Passenger Rail by Delivering Billions in New Funding | the White House.” The White House. The White House. November 6, 2023.

“Views on the Infrastructure Bill - AP-NORC.” 2021. AP-NORC -. July 22, 2021.