President Biden to visit Baltimore next week

Published on: January 23, 2023 4:44 PM EST|Updated on: January 23, 2023 4:48 PM EST

United States President Joe Biden takes the stage at a campaign event in support of Democratic gubernatorial candidate Wes Moore on 11/7/21 at Bowie State University, the night before the general election.
President Joe Biden speaks at a Democratic rally in Bowie in November. He'll visit Baltimore next week to discuss rail projects. (Kaitlin Newman/The Baltimore Banner)
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President Joe Biden will visit Baltimore next week to discuss funding for rail projects, the White House announced Monday.

The president is scheduled to come to town next Monday, Jan. 30. He plans to discuss how funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, which was passed last year, will be used to replace the nearly 150-year-old Baltimore & Potomac Tunnel.

The 1.4-mile tunnel, also known as the Frederick Douglass Tunnel, carries MARC and Amtrak trains under Baltimore.

It’s the oldest tunnel in the Amtrak system and “a single point of failure” for trains in the Northeast corridor, according to Amtrak. The existing tunnel is prone to water leaks, falling bricks and sinking of the track floor, according to Amtrak.

The tunnel replacement project includes two new tunnel tubes, new roads and railroad bridges, new rails and tracks, and a new West Baltimore MARC station that will be ADA-compliant.

Planning and land purchases for the project have been under way, and the first visible signs of construction will begin this year, with work continuing for several years.

Further details of the Democratic president’s visit have not yet been released publicly.

Following Biden’s Baltimore stop on Monday, he’ll head to New York City on Tuesday to discuss a Hudson River tunnel project.

pamela.wood@thebaltimorebanner.com

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