House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif, called on Republicans to agree to invest more money in the nation’s rail system and other infrastructure projects following Tuesday’s deadly Amtrak crash.
“Republicans have been very much against Amtrak for a very long time,” Pelosi said. “For some reason it has just been opposed by some, not all, in the Republican Party.”
A House appropriations subcommittee on Wednesday approved a bill that would provide the Federal Railroad Administration with $1.4 billion for fiscal 2016, which is $262 million below 2015 levels.
Democrats have criticized the GOP for making the cuts in the wake of the train crash, which killed seven and injured hundreds.
The spending cuts come mostly from the railway infrastructure budget. The rail safety budget was not cut.
“We must strengthen the confidence and safety of our infrastructure,” Pelosi said. “If you’re going to have safety, you have to have strong infrastructure.”
Investigators have determined the Amtrak train involved in the fatal crash was traveling at twice the speed limit and derailed on a sharp curve going 102 mph.
