Hodes Presents $392,000 for Critical Rail Safety Upgrades in Coos County

For Immediate Release

August 6, 2008

Contact:        Mark Bergman

                202-225-5206

Hodes Presents $392,000 for Critical Rail Safety Upgrades in Coos County

Grant will improve infrastructure in the North Country

Gorham, NH- Congressman Hodes presented a grant for $392,000 to make needed safety upgrades to the St. Lawrence & Atlantic Railroad in Coos County in a ceremony today in Gorham.

"Addressing the transportation infrastructure needs of our region is beyond any one party," Congressman Paul Hodes said.  "The needs are too great, and the resources of any one group are too small.  Only through us working together, at the federal, state, local, and private industry levels, can we muster the resources necessary to begin making long term improvements that will benefit our neighbors today and our future generations."

"Investing in the future of Coos County and the rail line passing through it is critical for the economic well being of not only the railroad and its employees, but more importantly the communities and customers we serve in New Hampshire," said Mario Brault, President of the St. Lawrence & Atlantic Railroad. "It will help with both the retention of existing industries using rail service, and the attraction of new companies and jobs to our region.  This project is the beginning of a much larger investment to replace 23 miles of mainline rail between Berlin and the Vermont border over the next four years.  We look forward to the completion of this project through successful public-private partnerships with Congressman Hodes, the federal government and the state of New Hampshire; and to a brighter economic future for the North Country."

The St. Lawrence and Atlantic Railroad (SL&A) operates as a regional rail system totaling 185 miles in Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont.  SL&A is a critical route for northern New England because of its connections to several other regional railways.  This project will replace eight miles of 70 to 80 year-old rail in New Hampshire.  Benefits of the project include:

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  • Protecting and providing jobs during difficult economic times in the North Country, while attracting new businesses to the region;
  • Safely transporting large bulk shipments on rail; and
  • Improving the east-west freight transportation corridor across New Hampshire, while keeping this route intact for international trade and port access.

SL&A employs approximately 55 New Hampshire residents.