Hundreds of Building Trades Union Members rallied at Gateway’s Hudson Tunnel Project jobsite earlier this week, calling on the Trump Administration to restore funding so they can return to work building the Nation’s largest infrastru
Construction on the new train tunnel connecting New Jersey and New York began in November 2023, but funding was frozen this past October. Although a Federal Judge has issued a Temporary Restraining Order blocking the funding freeze, work has not resumed as the Trump Administration appeals the decision. This means nearly 1,000 jobs have already been eliminated, with tens of thousands more who are connected to the project hanging in limbo.
North America’s Building Trades Unions (NABTU) President Sean McGarvey said: “This funding uncertainty affects more than just our Members. Manufacturers, suppliers, investors and scores of small businesses will also be impacted, as this uncertainty disrupts current and future development related to the Gateway Project. To the thousands of Building Trades Members and stakeholders now facing uncertainty, we stand with you. To the Governors and the Gateway Development Commission working to restore funding, we have your back. And to those with the authority to release these critical infrastructure dollars: ‘Enough is enough.’”
International Union of North America (LIUNA) General President Brent Booker said: “Each day hundreds of LIUNA Members and their Building Trades Brothers and Sisters report to work on the Gateway Hudson Tunnel to provide for their families. While they have shown up at the crack of dawn every day, the Trump Administration has failed to show up for them. By blocking funds that were allocated for the ($16 billion) project, the Administration’s chaotic and baffling actions have put the livelihoods of LIUNA Members at risk. This recklessness threatens to cause significant economic harm to New York and New Jersey and corresponding ripple effects across the Nation. It is reported that the Administration’s price to release funding to resume the project is to name New York’s Penn Station and Washington Dulles International Airport after the President. This is a vain demand being leveraged at the expense of our Nation’s infrastructure and the hard-working Building Trades Members now out of a job. This is ‘not America First’ – it is Trump First and American Workers ‘last.’ We call on President Trump to stop holding our livelihoods hostage, put Working People and our economy first, and immediately release funding for the Gateway Tunnel Project.”
