For commuters trekking between New York and New Jersey, a light at the end of the tunnel has finally appeared. Following a brief funding scare and legal battle earlier this year, tunnel boring has officially commenced on the $16 billion Hudson Tunnel Project.

Long hailed as America’s “most urgent” infrastructure project, this massive undertaking will create a brand-new rail link between the two states, drastically expanding capacity and reliability across the heavily congested Northeast Corridor.

New York Governor Kathy Hochul and New Jersey Governor Mikie Sherrill met in North Bergen on Monday, Sept. 28, 2026, to ceremonially flip the switch on the first tunnel boring machine (TBM). The milestone marks the start of the largest excavation beneath the Hudson River in over a century, promising a future of seamless travel for the more than 200,000 daily passengers who rely on the crossing.

Inside the Tech: The Tunnel Boring Machines

These aren’t your average drills. The project utilizes two colossal, 500-foot-long “Single Shield” tunnel boring machines, each weighing over 1,680 tons with a massive 28-foot diameter cutterhead.

Acting as subterranean factories, these machines don’t just chew through the hard basalt of the Palisades—they simultaneously install the concrete lining that forms the permanent tunnel walls, clearing debris via conveyor belts as they inch forward.

Excavating at a pace of roughly 30 feet per day, the first machine will carve out a mile-long path through solid rock toward Weehawken. A second machine will follow closely behind to create the parallel tube.

Despite the heavy-duty rock crushing happening below, James Starace, the Gateway Development Commission’s chief of program delivery, noted that the underground work shouldn’t disrupt daily life above ground.

Replacing a Century-Old System

The tunneling phase is the crown jewel of the broader Gateway Program, whuch is designed to improve rail service and reliability between New Jersey and New York.

Once complete, the project will provide a crucial two-track connection for NJ Transit and Amtrak trains funneling into Manhattan’s Penn Station.

The current North River Tunnel has been in continuous operation since 1910, originally dug by hand using a historic cast-iron shield method. Beyond its sheer age, the existing dual-tube tunnel suffered catastrophic flooding during Hurricane Sandy in 2012, leaving lingering salt deposits that continue to damage aging electrical systems and cause out-of-nowhere delays for riders today.

Sherrill noted during the event that though the current tunnel was innovative for its time when Teddy Roosevelt was president, “[A]nyone who’s endured the hours-long delays in the current tunnel can tell you it’s no longer state-of-the-art, not by a long shot.”

Expected Timeline and Economic Impact

The current TBMs will take about a year to reach the Weehawken access shaft before a new set of machines takes over the softer riverbed excavation. If all goes according to plan, the timeline will look like this:

- 2035: The brand-new, two-tube Hudson River tunnel opens for passenger service

- 2038: The full rehabilitation of the historic North River Tunnel is completed, resulting in a modern four-track system

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey is managing the first phase of delivery and is pumping $2.7 billion into the project alongside their engineering expertise.

Beyond fixing daily commutes, the project is a major win for the local economy, generating nearly $20 billion in economic activity and supporting up to 100,000 family-sustaining union jobs.

Get a first look at the massive tunnel boring machine in action below: