Congress launched the Northeast Corridor Improvement Project in 1976 to upgrade the transportation system between Washington, D.C., and Boston.
This initiative included safety enhancements, modernization of the signaling system by General Railway Signal, and the establishment of Chrysler’s Centralized Electrification and Traffic Control centers in major cities.
The project introduced the AEM-7 locomotive, which reduced travel times and became the most successful engine on the corridor. It aimed for travel times of two hours and 40 minutes between Washington and New York and three hours and 40 minutes between Boston and New York, but these targets were not met due to limited funding in the 1980s.
Additionally, the electrification from New Haven to Boston was part of the 1976 Railroad Revitalization and Regulatory Reform Act, and the last grade crossings between New York and Washington were closed around 1985, leaving 11 grade crossings in Connecticut.
