HARTFORD–Following passage of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, the largest investment in infrastructure in America’s history, newspapers, labor unions, and leaders across the state have highlighted the transformational role the bipartisan legislation will have on people in Connecticut. The bill will make historic investments in highways, railroads, mass transit, clean energy, and coastal resilience.

Here’s what they’re saying:

CT News Junkie: Lawmakers Call Federal Infrastructure Dollars ‘Transformational’

  Standing on Hartford’s Union Station train platform Monday, the state’s congressional delegation called the weekend passage of a long-gestating $1 trillion infrastructure package a victory for Connecticut’s highway and rail systems as well as its construction workforce.

[…] Don Shubert, president of the Connecticut Construction Industries Association, said they need some lead time to get the proper equipment to get ready for these projects.

“We haven’t been working to capacity since 2008. Our employment numbers in Connecticut are less than they were in 1991,” Shubert said. “We are ready to get back to scale. Our employers are ready to go. And just with this news the momentum is already starting to begin.”

Members of the state’s construction unions joined the federal lawmakers on the train platform Monday and applauded the bill’s expected boon to their trade.

“Five billion dollars means a decade of work for decades of waiting,” Keith Brothers, president of the Connecticut State Building Trades Council, said. Brothers said the work would be done with Connecticut workers. “I will tell you this, if the building trades was on the stock market and you could buy stock, I’d buy it because this is our time.”

WFSB: Congressional delegation outlines what the recently-passed infrastructure bill means for CT

Monday, Democratic Sens. Richard Blumenthal and Chris Murphy, along with Reps. John Larson, Joe Courtney, and Jahana Hayes, said were joined by construction workers and union leaders.

They said the legislation makes historic investments in highways, railroads, mass transit, clean energy, and coastal resilience, and will significantly improve the lives of all Connecticut residents and businesses.

[…] The plan is also expected to have a huge impact on the economy and create thousands of jobs.

Truckers and drivers said they'd like to see better roads and more places for truckers to park.

Hartford Courant: Here’s what Connecticut will receive under the $1 trillion infrastructure bill approved by Congress

Connecticut’s two senators said thousands of jobs would be created to help rebuild and expand infrastructure in Connecticut and the United States.

U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal called the bill “a gigantic breakthrough” that will open up funding for public works projects across Connecticut. U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy said it was “the biggest bipartisan investment in infrastructure in our nation’s history.”

NBC CT: Connecticut Officials Say Infrastructure Money Is ‘Transformational'

Connecticut will receive nearly $6 billion in federal funds to improve its infrastructure. What projects will they decide to fund?

“These are projects that will ultimately be transformational and while there are a lot of folks who will go to work this year, much of this money will be spent out over time to make sure we’re getting big long-term investments,” U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy said.

Murphy said Connecticut may be getting $6 billion, but it can compete for more than $100 billion in additional grants.

“We think we will do incredibly well when it comes to some of these other competitive programs,” Murphy said.

WSHU: Connecticut will get billions from the Congress-approved infrastructure package, according to lawmakers

Connecticut’s U.S. Congressional delegation said the $1.2 trillion infrastructure package will transform the state and the country. The Biden administration said hundreds of bridges and nearly 10,000 miles of highway in Connecticut and New York are in poor condition.

U.S. Senator Chris Murphy of Connecticut said the infrastructure bill means more to Connecticut than any other state in the nation.

“Connecticut is a state whose economy is directly tied to our ability to move people and goods out to New York and out to Boston,” Murphy said. “And so when our rail lines and our highways get jammed up, that’s a disincentive for companies to come to this state.”

Register Citizen: CT getting $6 billion to improve roads, internet access in infrastructure bill

A portion of the package — about $30 billion — is going toward the Northeast Rail Corridor, which will make it faster for residents to get from New Haven to New York City, according to Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., in a video put on Twitter.

Murphy said the bill will “give us a chance to rebuild the rail line from Boston to Washington — the busiest ... in the nation.”

Connecticut will get $3.5 billion to improve the state’s highway system, including the redesign of the Interstate 84 and Interstate 91 intersection in Hartford.

[…] Some $1.3 billion will go toward improving the state’s public transportation, including buses.

About $100 million will fund broadband coverage so 27,000 residents in rural parts of the state can get high-speed internet. These funds will also go toward subsidies for internet bills, which 600,000 residents will qualify for, Murphy said.

Murphy added that the bill will “create new jobs, finally fix our nation’s crumbling infrastructure and deliver serious cost savings to Americans.”

The bill also promises the state will receive $561 million for bridge replacements and repairs. According to Murphy, Connecticut has more than 300 bridges that are considered “structurally deficient,” or that are at risk of falling down.

The U.S. Coast Guard will receive $489 million, which will help revamp a dorm building at the Coast Guard Academy and build a pier in New London where the USS Eagle will land, according to Murphy.

An additional $106 million is going toward the Long Island Sound to clean up the water and revitalize the shoreline to protect the region from storms, Murphy said.

Murphy also got his Buy American bill included in the package, which will allow local manufacturers to apply for federal government work “before it gets sent overseas,” Murphy said.

PATCH: Here's 10 Things $1.2 Trillion Stimulus Bill Does For CT

U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., shared in a video 10 things that he says the bipartisan stimulus package does specifically for Connecticut.

1. $30 billion for the Northeast Rail corridor, which he said will "dramatically improve" how long it takes residents to get from New Haven to New York City.

2. $106 million to protect Long Island Sound, which includes protecting the water and cleaning up the coastline.

3. $489 million for the U.S. Coast Guard including building a new pier in New London where the U.S.S. Eagle will land, which he said will create numerous jobs, and revamping dorms for the academy.

4. $1 billion to protect Connecticut's vast coastline from larger, more reoccurring storms.

5. $53 million for electric charging stations, which will allow more residents to purchase electric cars since the stations will be more plentiful throughout the state.

6. $3.5 billion to improve CT's highways, including the redesign of I-84 and I-91 in Hartford.

7. $561 million for bridge repairs. 300 bridges in CT are currently listed as "structurally deficient."

8. $1.3 billion to improve public transportation in CT, which will add more buses, Murphy said.

9. $100 million for high-speed internet, which includes funds to help ensure everyone can afford high-speed internet.

10. Small manufacturers in CT can more easily apply for federal work first before it goes overseas as part of the bill.

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