NJ Transit, Amtrak agree Northeast Corridor line needs repairs but funding

[mark1447 685]

NJ Transit, Amtrak agree Northeast Corridor line needs repairs but funding a challenge

 

NJ Transit and Amtrak officials agree the Northeast Corridor line that carries their commuter and high-speed trains along the East Coast needs repairs, particularly the signals and power system, but there won’t be an immediate fix, Jim Weinstein, executive director of NJ Transit said Wednesday, the same day The Record reported infrastructure problems are a major cause of delays on the heavily used line.

 

“You can’t just go out and fix everything all at once,” Weinstein said. “It has to be sequenced.”

 

He said he met with Amtrak President Joseph Boardman about several weeks ago to discuss the corridor, which is owned by Amtrak, but used most heavily in New Jersey by NJ Transit to run trains into Manhattan.

 

The Record analysis showed NJ Transit’s on-time performance is improving on most lines, including the Northeast Corridor, but the delays on the corridor were disproportionately high and that many of the delays were due to signal, catenary wire and other infrastructure problems. Fixing the corridor issues, however, has been a challenge because both agencies say funding is limited.

 

Weinstein estimated it would cost billions to fix the aging system, including the 100-year-old Portal Bridge the trains rely on to cross the Hackensack River. “You don’t have to be a brain surgeon to understand that something built [long ago] probably needs some hip replacement,” he said.

 

However, he said that despite the delays, a customer service survey indicates the agency is improving. Results from the quarterly “Scorecard” survey showed rail riders gave the agency a 5.7 out of 10 points. On the corridor, NJ Transit was given a 5.5.

 

Just 16,000 of the agency’s 440,700 customers participated in the survey.

 

Weinstein also addressed on-time performance scores for buses heading to the Port Authority Bus Terminal. The agency’s goal is a 93.5 percent rate, but data released by NJ Transit Wednesday show it was 86 percent last month. Buses heading to the Newark and Hoboken terminals, by contrast, each had a 94 percent on-time rate in July, while the Atlantic City Bus Terminal was on time 98 percent of the time.

 

“The Port Authority Bus Terminal is the thing that we’re focusing on,” Weinstein said. He said NJ Transit is looking at whether bus ramps and bus gates could be better managed.

 

“We know the bus terminal is a challenge,” said Weinstein. “We understand that having to take a bus home from Port Authority Bus Terminal is not a pleasant experience for the most part during the peak hour.”

 

NJ Transit Spokesman John Durso said that of the 900,000 trips NJ Transit provides daily, about 140,000 come out of the Port Authority Bus Terminal.

 

Source: http://www.northjersey.com/news/NJ_Transit_Amtrak_agree_Northeast_Corridor_line_needs_repairs_but_funding_a_challenge.html

[Tokkemon 448]

So many trains, so little money.

 

Why does everything need to cost so much?!?!

[mfs NJT459 170]

As for the buses PABT On Time Performance,

lets not forget the Helix Fix

 

http://www.njtransit.com/tm/tm_servlet.srv?hdnPageAction=PressReleaseTo&PRESS_RELEASE_ID=2782

 

As well as South Marginal Street Bridge

 

http://www.njtransit.com/sa/sa_servlet.srv?hdnPageAction=ServiceAdjustmentTo&AdjustmentId=8744

[BM5 via Woodhaven 5,156]

Everyones screwed

[161 New York 170]

As for the buses PABT On Time Performance,

lets not forget the Helix Fix

 

http://www.njtransit...RELEASE_ID=2782

 

As well as South Marginal Street Bridge

 

http://www.njtransit...justmentId=8744

 

 

I wonder what the 161's on-time PABT arrival rate is...

 

In the afternoons heading into New York, its usually 45+ minutes from Route 3/Route 495 to the toll plaza.

 

NJT/PANYNJ needs to find a solution. I think heading into New York is worse than it is going out.

In the mornings, I am wondering now if I should leave earlier on the x22/x23/x24 to avoid "construction running late", this is already a concern with the activity on the N/B Eastern Spur of the NJTP.

[BM5 via Woodhaven 5,156]

Take the first X22A I suggest