The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey has released a record-setting $45 billion capital plan that outlines the region’s most ambitious decade of infrastructure construction to date. The 2026–2035 proposal, announced Nov. 13, lays out funding for a wide range of long-planned megaprojects across the New York metropolitan area, from airports to tunnels, bridges, transit hubs, and state-of-good-repair programs.
According to the agency’s announcement, the plan includes a $2.7 billion commitment to the Gateway Program, one of the most critical rail infrastructure efforts in the country. It also pushes forward major multi-billion-dollar overhauls, including the $11 billion Midtown Bus Terminal rebuild, new terminal work at major airports, and large-scale rehabilitation projects across the bistate region.
The timing of the proposal comes as President Donald Trump’s administration has recently signaled potential pauses to federal funding for certain New York megaprojects. While the threat has raised concern among regional leaders, contractors working on these large endeavors have emphasized that short-term project progress remains active, avoiding immediate disruption.
This tension underscores the importance of the Port Authority’s independent funding strategy, which relies on tolls, fees, bonds, and revenue rather than federal appropriations for most of its capital work.
The agency characterized the new plan as a continuation of the capital investment strategy it launched in 2017—one that has already delivered some of the region’s most notable recent projects. Completed efforts include transformative work at LaGuardia Airport, the debut of Newark Liberty International Airport’s Terminal A, and ongoing modernization at JFK Airport.
The Port Authority highlighted that 2026 alone includes $10.1 billion in planned spending, with $4.2 billion going toward operations and $4.1 billion directed to capital projects. This one-year spending level reflects the unprecedented scale of the decade-long blueprint.
The new plan also reinforces the agency’s state-of-good-repair program, which continues to address aging assets. Key projects include:
These investments are designed to strengthen safety, preserve critical transportation corridors, and extend the lifespan of vital structures that serve millions of travelers annually.
One of the defining components of the plan is the Port Authority’s funding toward the Gateway Program, often described as the most important rail project in the country. The project includes the construction of the new Hudson River rail tunnels and the rehabilitation of the existing 100-plus-year-old tubes beneath the river—structures that serve the Northeast Corridor, the busiest rail line in the U.S.
The agency’s $2.7 billion allocation signals that despite political headwinds, the regional commitment to Gateway remains firm.
The proposal will undergo six public hearings before heading to the Port Authority Board of Commissioners for final consideration. A vote is scheduled for Dec. 18, when the board will determine whether to formally adopt the plan and initiate the next decade of major capital construction.
If approved, the program positions New York and New Jersey for one of the largest infrastructure buildouts in their history—creating years of heavy civil construction opportunities and reinforcing the long-term modernization of the region’s transportation backbone.
Originally reported by Sebastian Obando in Construction Dive.
