Schumer says NY transit funding threatened in Congress

November 10, 2015 Associated Press

U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer. AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster

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U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer says the recently House-passed transportation bill cuts funding for a mass transit program critical to New York.

The New York Democrat said Monday the “High Density States” program provides his state, six others and the District of Columbia with millions of additional dollars annually for mass transit.

That includes about $140 million a year for New York and New Jersey combined.

While the Senate-passed transportation bill protects those funds, he’s urging colleagues to carry that through to the final version negotiated over the next few weeks.

The funding was intended to help some of the most congested urban areas, including parts of Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Delaware and Maryland.

Schumer says the House’s six-year transportation bill would instead increase funding for a competitive bus grant program.