New York's MTA on track for $1 billion federal loan

The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) has approved a loan of $967.1 million to the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) to improve the safety of signal systems, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Friday.

The signal systems are used by the MTA's two commuter railroads, the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) and Metro-North Railroad.

The loan will finance the installment of positive train control, which removes the potential for human error that can lead to train-related accidents.

"This loan is a dramatic investment in the MTA - one that will make trains safer for all riders on Metro-North and the LIRR," Cuomo said. "With this infusion of funding, crews will be getting to work on individual cars and along hundreds of miles of track to install state of the art technology that can save lives. This loan could not have been possible without the hard work and support of (U.S. Department of Transportation) Secretary Anthony Foxx and (FRA) Acting Administrator Sarah Feinberg, and I thank them on behalf of all MTA commuter rail customers for helping us make this important advancement possible."

The loan to the MTA is among the largest through the Federal Railroad Administration's Railroad Rehabilitation and Improvement Financing Program.  

"We are delighted to have been able to work with the Federal Railroad Administration to make this historic, and extremely important award possible," MTA Chairman and CEO Thomas Prendergast said. "The most important thing we do each day is strive to ensure the safety of our passengers, our employees and the public at large. This award will help us enhance that effort in a very significant way."