Railroads to Trump: Greenlight Freight P3s Beneficial to Public
Public-private partnerships for freight railroad infrastructure that are expected to significantly benefit the public should be implemented, the head of the Association of American Railroads said in a Feb. 28 letter to President Trump.
“We pay so taxpayers do not, thus making our involvement in this conversation center far more on policy recommendations than on financial requests,” said Ed Hamberger, the association’s president and CEO.
“We believe railroads must be a central part of infrastructure talks,” he added.
The rail group’s letter was unveiled ahead of Trump’s highly anticipated address before Congress. In a meeting with governors at the White House on Feb. 27, Trump pledged to issue a “big” announcement on infrastructure funding during the address, scheduled for Feb. 28.
On the campaign, Trump said the country’s infrastructure could be modernized over 10 years through a $1 trillion investment plan. The plan would entail providing tax credits for investors.
Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) called Trump’s infrastructure funding pitch a “non-starter.”
“If it’s tax breaks, we’re not going to be for it,” Schumer said at the National Press Club on Feb. 27. “It won’t build things in large places, large parts of America, particularly rural America.”
