TRENTON — A bill requiring NJ Transit to address restoration of one-seat-ride service to Manhattan from its Raritan Valley Line has passed both houses of the state legislature and now goes to Gov. Phil Murphy for his signature.
The Bridgewater Courier News reports the bill, which passed the state assembly 76-0 on Monday after being passed 37-0 by the state senate in June, would require the transit agency to prepare a study on restoration of the service and submit it within six months.
Direct single-ride service to New York Penn Station was suspended in 2018 as part of NJ Transit’s efforts to install positive train control. Off-peak direct service was restored in September.
What exactly are they studying??? The last sentence says it all: “Off-peak direct service was restored this past September.”
Peak direct service never existed on the RVL. There was always a push, but capacity constraints at NYP were always the reasons given to not offer the service.
Restoration implies bringing something back that once existed. If the study is to offer peak direct service, this would be NEW service or an EXPANSION of service, not a restoration of service.
6 months to figure out the lack of capacity in the tunnels during rush hour. How much money are they going to waste on this study?