Congressional spending deal provides funding for 2,500 new air traffic controllers, $2.4 billion for Amtrak

WASHINGTON, Jan 20 (Reuters) - A bipartisan spending deal announced Tuesday provides funding for 2,500 air traffic controllers and $2.4 billion for U.S. passenger railroad Amtrak.

The funding deal also includes $514 million to subsidize air services to rural communities in a program called the Essential Air Service program, rejecting a White House proposal to cut the program by 50%, and boosts annual funding to modernize air traffic control towers by $824 million.

The bill provides $2 million for an independent study on the airspace in the Washington, DC area after a January 2025 crash between a U.S. Army helicopter and American Airlines passenger jet killed 67 people and exposed significant weaknesses in aviation safety.