Amtrak, NJ Transit unveil plan to fix "unacceptable" issues on rails
SUMMIT, N.J. -- A new effort is underway to fix train troubles after NJ Transit and Amtrak reported delays and sometimes even temporary service suspensions on multiple days throughout June.
Commuters were often left stranded and crowded in Penn Station, sometimes during extreme heat.
At a press conference in Summit on Thursday, Gov. Phil Murphy and the transit agencies unveiled a plan to fix a situation that they say has been unacceptable. It includes expanded visual and helicopter inspections of power lines, more substation and transformer testing, pursuing grants to fix issues, and regular reports on progress.
"This must be fixed. There is no choice," Murphy said.
Amtrak vows to right the many wrongs
Amtrak, which maintains the rail lines and gets money from NJ Transit, has accepted responsibility for service delays and suspensions plaguing commuters.
"There isn't a single member of the 20,000 people team at Amtrak that finds what has happened in the commuter experience in the last several weeks to be acceptable. It is, in fact, unacceptable," said board member Tony Coscia.
Amtrak and NJ Transit are vowing to work together to fix problems. Some have been blamed on overhead wire and power issues. Others, on disabled trains.
"Clearly, in the last several weeks, we discovered an issue in the interface between Amtrak trains, between Amtrak's infrastructure and NJ Transit trains that have caused these issues to reoccur. We are moving heaven and earth to determine the precise cause of that and to address it," Coscia said.
Many say NJ Transit hasn't been a joy ride of late
Terry Allen Wellington said her trains are constantly late.
"I have had enough. I am sick of it, so sick of it," Wellington said.
NJ Transit's problems come in advance of a 15% fare hike that will begin in July.
"Do better. They are going to raise the fare next month. What are we paying for? No service? It's not good," Wellington said.
That fare hike is coming as NJ Transit faces a more than $100 million budget deficit.
"Families deserve a break -- not a fare hike, which is why I am calling on NJ Transit to pause and re-evaluate these plans until New Jersey commuters have the reliable service they expect and deserve," Congresswoman Miki Sherrill said.