The $1.6 billion project to repair Amtrak tunnels in New York City that were damaged 12 years ago by Hurricane Sandy had the backing of former President Joe Biden and the region's governors.

But with President Donald Trump's return to office, New York is taking a step back from its previous support for Amtrak and the repair work on the tunnels connecting Manhattan and Long Island, according to Politico.

Despite work beginning last month on the tunnels below the East River, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul and members of her Democratic administration cast aspersions on the project at the last minute, suggesting that Amtrak can't be trusted and doesn't care about its customers.

The reported about-face suggests that the national railroad is in for hard times in the post-Biden era.

While "Amtrak Joe" pumped billions into the railroad and New York rail projects, it's currently facing mass layoffs and renewed pressure to cut costs and turn a profit. Amtrak CEO Stephen Gardner also reportedly stepped down in March after Trump requested his resignation.

But if Amtrak can't count on the support of Northeastern Democrats like Hochul, whose state boasts its busiest routes and New York Penn Station, it's unclear who the passenger railroad can rely on.

The clash over the tunnel repair project is one of many points of contention between the Democrat governor and the Republican White House when it comes to transportation. Trump is fighting to end Hochul's signature congestion pricing program in New York City. Meanwhile, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy recently took control of the rebuild of Penn Station, removing the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) as the lead on the project and replacing the agency with Amtrak.     

When Sandy hit, the superstorm flooded two of the four East River train tunnels, leaving salt deposits in its wake that are eroding the concrete casing. In the time since, Amtrak has been developing a plan to fix the tunnels by closing them, one after another, to undergo two-and-a-half years of repair work.

If something goes wrong in any of the other tunnels, the closures could cause delays for Long Island commuters that Hochul worries could sink confidence in public transit.

"The last thing I want to do is have a setback that can go on for years," Hochul said. "So, I was very clear in my messaging to Amtrak: Don't screw this up."

As the project drew closer, Hochul and the MTA reportedly asked Amtrak to abandon its closure plans and adopt what's known as a "repair in place" approach, which would keep the tunnels open during peak commuting times by shifting the work to nights and weekends.

"Amtrak's track record for us is a little terrifying," MTA CEO Janno Lieber told Politico, citing problems with Amtrak's system last summer that cause major commuting headaches for New Jersey riders.

New York's criticism of Amtrak reportedly ramped up shortly after Duffy announced in April that the railroad would be controlling the overhaul of Penn Station. While it's unclear if the tiff over the tunnel repair is related to the Transportation secretary's redirect, it's a theory that many are likely considering, given how long the MTA and Amtrak had been discussing the tunnel work.

"We were surprised by this sudden disavowment of a plan that we had worked together on for a long time," Laura Mason, Amtrak's executive vice president for capital project delivery, told Politico.