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ALERT: Trump 2018 Budget Proposal Takes Aim at Public Transit

The Trump Administration has released its full fiscal year (FY) 2018 budget proposal and it includes significant cuts to public transportation including…

  • Eliminating Federal funding for all 15 long-distance passenger rail routes, including the Lake Shore Limited that stops here in Rochester each day
  • Eliminating the Federal Transit Administration’s Capital Investment Program (New Starts) that helps cities of all sizes build new transit lines
  • Eliminating the competitive TIGER grant program which has helped fund previously unattainable local projects such as Rochester’s new Amtrak station

Transportation professionals and advocates around the country are sounding the alarm…

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Federal Funding Announced For Inner Loop Project

It's the end of the road for this section of Rochester's Inner Loop.
ROCHESTER, NY – Today, Congresswoman Louise M. Slaughter (D-NY) and Mayor Tom Richards (D) announced a $17.7 million Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) grant to bring the Eastern section of the Inner Loop to grade, a project that Rep. Slaughter and the Mayor have spearheaded for many years. The grant – the third largest TIGER grant in the nation – will be used to “bridge the moat” between the city center and communities like the Neighborhood of the Arts, Park Avenue, and the South Wedge that have been separated by Rochester’s Inner Loop since the 1950s…

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Latest Inner Loop Plan: a winner in our book

Posted by: Bob Williams, VP of Advocacy

Inner Loop East Reconstruction Project
After tasting some success during the last round of the USDOT’s TIGER grant program ($15 Million was awarded for Rochester’s intermodal station), the city has jumped back into the aptly named moat with another application that we at Reconnect Rochester are extremely excited about. There is a very conscious effort afoot on the part of city staff to rid us once and for all of a sizable portion of the Inner Loop, that underutilized sunken ring road and choker of downtown connectivity.

While the Intermodal Station took precedence in the 2012 fight for funds, this most recent expressway removal proposal is the best we’ve seen yet. A financial winner just on its face, in terms of reducing future maintenance burden, the latest from city hall is very serious about reconnection and reintegration. Take a look at the latest design draft…

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