With $1.2 trillion in federal infrastructure monies available nationwide and $4.2 billion in the state environmental bond fund, local officials are looking to get a fair share for projects that have been on the drawing board for decades.
High on the priority list is upgrading the region’s roads and bridges and electrifying the three Long Island Rail Road branches that still use diesel trains, as well as expanding sewers and protecting the island’s natural resources. Wish list items also include bridges to carry William Floyd Parkway over Montauk Highway in Shirley and a Nichols Road span over Nesconset Highway in South Setauket, according to Brookhaven Supervisor Edward Romaine. “That money would be very helpful toward what we need to do,” Romaine said.
The region will be competing for money okayed by Congress in 2021 in what was called a Bipartisan Infrastructure Deal, and New York’s Clean Water, Clean Air, and Green Jobs Environmental Bond Act approved by voters last November. Much of the federal funding will be allocated via grants that can be applied for through various federal agencies, according to Congressman Andrew Garbarino, who is working with municipalities and local elected officials to provide information on grant opportunities. A portion of funding was allocated directly to the state and Congressman Garbarino said he has urged Gov. Kathy Hochul to prioritize Long Island’s infrastructure needs in the allocation of the funds.
Demonstrating the wide berth of distribution for the federal funds, Garbarino pointed out that application can be made through the departments of Agriculture, Commerce, Energy, Homeland Security, Interior, and Transportation, as well as the Environmental Protection Agency, Federal Aviation Administration, Emergency Management Agency, Highway Administration, and the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration.
Romaine, a candidate for Suffolk executive, said he’s looking to lead the county and its 10 towns in appealing to the federal agencies and the state for a fair share of the funding. “We have multiple issues to address, and will go about it in a coordinated, impactful way,” he said. With regard to William Floyd Parkway, Romaine noted, “There's intersections like that throughout Suffolk County where they did not consider the engineering aspects of what they were designing. And now we have massive traffic and congestion.”
Another way to combat traffic tie ups is modernizing the region’s “antiquated” rail system, Romaine said, by electrifying the Babylon Line, getting diesels off the Main Line to at least Riverhead, and re-powering the Port Jefferson Line all the way from Huntington. “The fact that we are still depending on this 19th century technology is outrageous,” Romaine continued, “particularly since diesel is very polluting.” The supervisor expressed concerns over the limited routes in and out of the Mastic Peninsula and would also like to see the William Floyd bridge carry over the railroad tracks to make it easier to access the area in an emergency.
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Vehicles pile up on William Floyd Parkway as it crosses
Montauk Highway in Shirley. If a local wish list comes through, a long-awaited bridge will be funded through the federal $1.2 trillion transportation deal.
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For decades, infrastructure in New York has suffered from a systemic lack of investment, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation. In fact, the American Society of Civil Engineers gave the state a C- on its infrastructure report card. “The historic Bipartisan Infrastructure Deal will make life better for millions of New York residents, create a generation of good-paying union jobs and economic growth, and position the United States to win the 21st century,” department officials boasted. On average, federal funds support 38 percent of state capital spending in New York for highway construction, right of way purchases, and planning and design work, according to the American Road & Transportation Builders Association.
When it was first proposed, the deal promised to funnel $11.2 billion to New York over five years. The state has 1,702 bridges and over 7,292 miles of highway in poor condition, the department reported. Since 2011, commute times have increased by 7.4 percent and on average, each driver pays $625 per year in costs due to traveling on roads in need of repair. New York airports are also projected to receive upwards of $685 million for infrastructure development under the deal and $100 million is promised to upgrade broadband internet service.
Addressing the state bond money, Department of Environmental Conservation spokesman Jeff Wernick said in a statement there are “historic levels of funding to update aging water infrastructure and protect water quality; strengthen communities' ability to withstand severe storms and flooding; reduce air pollution and lower climate-altering emissions; restore habitats; preserve outdoor spaces and local farms; and ensure equity by investing at least 35 percent, with a goal of 40 percent, of resources in disadvantaged communities.”
A DEC priority, according to Wernick, “is making critical investments to combat climate change, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and protect our natural resources, human health, and the environment. Under the leadership of Governor Hochul and with the continued support from the Biden Administration, New York is accelerating our efforts to build a cleaner, more resilient future for all New Yorkers.”
As with the federal bureaucracy, “an inter-agency working group comprised of multiple state agencies is currently identifying needs for environmental funding across the state and developing program logistics, including additional eligibility guidelines for how projects will be selected and delivered, through a transparent and collaborative process,” the DEC spokesman said. “The first outcome of these efforts is the draft eligibility guidelines to help administer water infrastructure funding supported by both the Environmental Bond Act and the Water Infrastructure Improvement and Intermunicipal Grants programs. The Environmental Bond Act specifically named WIIA and IMG programs as tools to help leverage a portion of up to $650 million in water quality improvement and resilient infrastructure funding.”
A micro-tunneling sewer project in the City of Newburgh was the first clean water construction project in New York to receive funds from the Infrastructure Deal. The state also reported $4.5 million for a Long Island Sound Study and $2.25 million to help replace outdated septic systems in Suffolk and Nassau counties. The funds augment state and county efforts to reduce nitrogen contamination in ground and surface water with $8 million more expected to support state and locally-driven water quality improvements and over the next five years. New York has also received $25 million from the Interior Department for its Orphaned and Abandoned Well Plugging Initiative and $590,000 from the EPA to build upon air monitoring initiatives, develop strategies to improve air quality and cut climate-altering emissions, and support New York's ambitious climate targets for a safer and healthier environment, Wernick reported.
“It will be an ongoing effort to make sure Long Island gets its fair share of the state and federal monies,” said Assemblyman Joseph DeStefano. “We certainly have a need and have definitely paid plenty in taxes to support these funds. The taxpayers need to get back what they’ve put in for transportation and water quality programs.”