NM Delegation Announces $15 Million to Upgrade Amtrak's Southwest Chief Route

Statement

Today, U.S. Sens. Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich and U.S. Reps. Michelle Lujan Grisham, Steve Pearce and Ben Ray Luján announced that the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) has awarded $15,210,143 for the Southwest Chief Route Advancement and Improvement Project to continue essential upgrades to Amtrak's Southwest Chief line. The Southwest Chief runs from Chicago to Los Angeles and stops in several New Mexico communities, including Raton, Las Vegas, Lamy, Albuquerque and Gallup. Without funding for these essential repairs, the Southwest Chief could have been rerouted or abandoned entirely -- a major economic loss to rural communities that depend on the service.

The new funding is being awarded through DOT's TIGER VII grant program. It will be used to add approximately 39 miles of new continuously welded rail and to repair more than 20 miles of track roadbed in and around Albuquerque. The New Mexico congressional delegation supported the grant application in a letter to DOT Secretary Anthony Foxx.

"The Southwest Chief is an important rail line for the communities that it serves in Northern New Mexico," Luján said. "This federal grant will fund much-needed repairs that are a critical step toward ensuring the continuing service of this route. Last week, I spoke with Transportation Secretary Foxx to express the importance of the Southwest Chief to New Mexico's economy and to the people who count on its service, and I will continue to work with the Secretary and my colleagues in the New Mexico delegation to advocate for the Southwest Chief."

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