AREA — NJ Transit and Amtrak rail riders have been experiencing delays and cancellations over the last few weeks, primarily along the Northeast corridor into New York Penn Station.
Most recently, these delays have been caused by overhead wire (otherwise known as a catenary system) issues on the Northeast corridor. The corridor is owned by Amtrak, which makes the railroad company responsible for all repairs, although NJ Transit and Conrail share these rails with Amtrak through lease agreements.
The 21 “Amtrak disruptions” that have occurred over the last seven weeks have been caused by an abundance of issues, leaving those who rely on train transportation aggravated. The week of June 17 alone saw service troubles on three days, not to mention that those days also coincided with an extreme heat wave.
Ali Brennan, a commuter who uses NJ Transit to get from Westfield Station to New York Penn Station, has been late to her job and has gotten home late multiple times in the last few weeks because of these issues. “I’m very frustrated and always worried while commuting,” she said.
Daniel Purnhagen, another commuter, shared similar sentiments. “Trains have consistently been delayed and late; I’ve gotten stuck on trains on my way home. For working parents, it makes it really tough when you have to try to get home to pick up your kids and coordinate schedules when the trains are unreliable,” he said.
While Mr. Purnhagen has recently taken the bus a few times in light of these issues, he noted that driving or traveling by bus can be more time consuming based on factors such as traffic or finding parking. He also commented that paying for tolls and parking every day can add up very quickly.
These issues came to a head mere days before the 15-percent fare hike was set to occur on July 1, which was approved by NJ Transit’s board in April. Many riders, as well as New Jersey political figures who signed on to a letter to US Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, are calling on the organization to rescind this increase. Politicians who signed this letter include Josh Gottheimer, Senator Bob Menendez, Donald Norcross, Congressman Tom Kean, Jr., Jeff Van Drew, Chris Smith, Bill Pascrell, Bonnie Watson Coleman, Andy Kim, Frank Pallone and Mikie Sherill, who led the bipartisan delegation’s letter campaign.
Along with rescinding the fare hike, these same politicians are calling for a total reform within NJ Transit and a federal investigation into Amtrak. The politicians also urge Amtrak to use its funds to rapidly repair the Northeast corridor.
Congressman Kean addressed Secretary Buttigieg at the Transport GOP hearing regarding the Department of Transportation’s policies and programming for next year.
“These delays prevent working parents from attending their children’s sports events and [cause them to] miss cherished family dinners. I look forward to working with you and your team on fixing these important issues,” Congressman Kean said.
To garner more funding towards NJ Transit, Governor Phil Murphy created a tentative agreement with the 600 New Jersey corporations that make at least $10 million a year in profit to pay a 2.5-percent tax on all earnings for five years. This tax is expected to raise $800 million for NJ Transit.
On June 27,Amtrak released a statement in which the company said that it is working with NJ Transit to investigate and quickly resolve these issues along the Northeast corridor.
It plans to incorporate more frequent and extensive catenary and track inspections as well as pantograph inspections, which is a jointed framework conveying a current to a train from overhead wires.
Amtrak also intends to consult with experts to identify root causes and development solutions. Additionally, the company will expand the helicopter catenary inspection and repair program, which takes photos of catenary systems that are then reviewed to see what needs replacement.
Amtrak will use its findings to come up with a set of investments to address the sources of chronic delays.
Further, Amtrak plans to utilize some long-term actions such as more frequent equipment testing and to pursue more funds to replace catenary, substations, transmissions and signal lines. The company also is coming up with a plan to expand overnight work windows to expedite the replacement process.
“Amtrak and NJ Transit will issue regular reports that will include details of our efforts and progress to date, as well as information regarding root causes as they are identified,” Amtrak’s statement reads. “Further research and development will continue as Amtrak and NJ Transit evaluate other methods to identify conditions and make repairs before service disruptions occur. Once the root causes are identified, Amtrak and NJ Transit will identify or seek additional resources, if necessary, to address issues that are uncovered.”
