NEWSLETTER REPORT December 16, 2011 Published Bi-Monthly PO Box 68, Chatham, N.J

Transcription

1 New Jersey Association of Railroad Passengers NEWSLETTER REPORT December 16, 2011 Published Bi-Monthly PO Box 68, Chatham, N.J FERRY BOATS (TRULY) RETURN TO HOBOKEN TERMINAL After an absence spanning 44 years, regular passenger ferryboat service resumed in venerable Hoboken Terminal on Dec. 7, with passengers adjusting smoothly to the new transfer route between train and boat. A mix of personnel from New York Waterways and New Jersey Transit aided those few riders robotically headed for the temporary ferry docks south of the terminal proper, in place since 1989 when ferries returned after a 22-year absence. The (few) errant riders were redirected toward the newer (and older) landing slips, but most riders seemed to handle the new transfer as if it had always been. NJ-ARP was on hand as Five of Six Ferry Slips Made Restoration Debut: Slips #2 and #3 handled the initial service to World Financial Center and Pier 11 both in lower Manhattan on Day 1, with video signs over the three other slips marked Not In Service but clearly ready to handle future traffi c. One slip reportedly still is to be restored to its original, historic confi guration, in keeping with the terminal s landmark status, but for the foreseeable future, fi ve slips and a fairly large concourse should handle passenger fl ows adequately. Encouragingly, NJ Transit and the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey Restored Direct Indoor Access between Docks and Train Platforms: The reopened passageway, recently the Lost and Found counter and still sporting the original fl ooring, offers sensible, quick, weatherprotected access to and from rail and marine modes, enhancing Hoboken Terminal s already prominent intermodal capabilities. It s a detail U.S. planners too often miss, but this time the detail was done right. True, it ll be more diffi cult to keep the terminal s main waiting room warm in the winter, since passenger fl ows (and winter cold) passing through the waiting room doors on both sides will increase markedly a small tradeoff, as is Shifting Convenience Factor for Various Rail Riders: One passenger arriving on Track 13 on Dec. 7 lamented that he now had to walk a greater distance to catch a ferry, and on his fi rst attempt missed his scheduled boat departure. But for those arriving on single-digit tracks, or by bus or by foot, the relocated ferry service offers a tighter connection. (HBLRT transfers are longer, exacerbating the numerous but lengthy LRT/ferry transfer distances endemic on the Gold Coast.) All in all, however, NJ-ARP deems the change a big plus, reinvigorating a huge portion of a venerable and still supremely functional intermodal transport hub that improves public transit for a wide range of New Jersey public transit users. Photos of the new facility taken opening day by NJ-ARP s Douglas John Bowen may be seen on page 8. KINKISHARYO U.S. STREETCAR TOUR REACHES GOLD COAST Wrapping up its 2011 marketing tour of U.S. cities across the country, KinkiSharyo International delivered its prototype ameritram streetcar to New Jersey for inspection and marketing hype of hybrid streetcar technology. NJ-ARP members have done their part throughout 2011, urging the manufacturer to include the Garden State on its tour schedule. Once secured, those same NJ-ARP members, along with other pro-rail allies, have Helped Arrange Showcase Tours for Hoboken Officials: One such tour is set to occur just before Christmas, on Dec. 23, when Hoboken leaders will board the ameritram prototype somewhere in Hudson- Bergen Light Rail Transit (HBLRT) territory, most likely at HBLRT s shops and yards at Communipaw Junction in Jersey City. KinkiSharyo, also the supplier of HBLRT light rail gear, is selling ameritram s ability to run both under wire and without same a sales point NJ-ARP reluctantly must acknowledge given insistent concerns over ugly overhead wires voiced by anti-rail partisans and/or NIMBYs. For its part, NJ-ARP Plans More Discussion, Other Demo Options, in Future: Marketing tour de force notwithstanding, KinkiSharyo is only one of numerous suppliers now advancing hybrid streetcar technology, or other streetcar options. NJ-ARP plans to help unite manufacturer s reps with whatever New Jersey locale is interested in streetcar development in 2012 or beyond. Possibly next in line: Bombardier Transportation or Siemens Industry, two heavyweights in North American passenger rail transportation.

2 PRESIDENT S PERSPECTIVE The sunken ARC - The Rest of the Story - Revisionist History?? Funny how things play out in life. Sometimes, just sometimes, in the aftermath of a great battle one which leaves lasting scars and remembered bruises even for the victor a slight glimmer of the behind-the-scenes machinations of the puppeteers who choreographed the decisive conflict, obscured as it was in the heat and haze of mortal combat, appears at a most unexpected moment in time and delivers soothing balm to the still festering wounds providing justification for all the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune that one endured during the altercation itself. And, it provides all who had been foot soldiers in the epoch-making event some well deserved solace, and, given the current season, an early Holiday present. That very same situation occurred on Thursday, Dec. 1, when I had the opportunity to hear and meet with New Jersey Commissioner of Transportation Jim Simpson at a breakfast sponsored by the New York Chapter of the Transportation Research Forum (TRF), a group of professional railroaders that gather monthly to hear various industry speakers expound on this and that. That morning s particular topic held more than passing interest for NJ-ARP, and myself personally, since it was entitled Why the ARC Project was Cancelled. NJ-ARP s active involvement in the Access to the Region s Core (ARC) project began as early as 1995, when we began attending early scoping meetings aimed at defining the broad outlines of the configuration which, in turn, evolved over time into 137 alternatives most of which were subsequently evaluated. After the bruising 2000 general elections, Jim Simpson became Federal Transit Administrator under then President George W. Bush in 2005 and remained in that capacity until the end of that administration. National Association of Railroad Passengers (NARP) Chairman George Chilson, NARP President Ross Capon, and NJ-ARP member George Haikalis had an opportunity to meet with Simpson on April 28, 2008, well into the project s definition stage, to offer our views that the monumental effort had veered way off track because: 1) It did not allow Amtrak access. 2) It did not permit operating redundancy. 3) It could not allow a track extension to Manhattan s East Side. During that get together, Simpson listened politely, even voicing his concern that there were indeed deficiencies in the project (like the lack of a connection between Penn Station and Grand Central Terminal (GCT) a chink in the otherwise impenetrable federal armor?), but he gave the three advocate participants very little hope that the course of events could be modified. Now we find out differently. Here s the rest of the story as scrawled hastily by your President at the breakfast. After Simpson defined a mega-project as...anything north of $2.5 billion (according to that definition ARC qualified) and explained that the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) likes...to give out checks... he stated (at least what was obvious to the morning s attendees) that the downside was that nobody in New Jersey Transit, much less any other transit agency, had ever built anything near the vastness and scope of ARC. Oh sure, the Commisioner continued, New York s MTA was engaged in the Initial Operating Segment (IOS) of the Second Avenue Subway and the LIRR extension to Grand CCT, but these were no brainers. For all these mega-projects, there was the need for a promoter, someone private or public, some governmental agency, that would benefit financially from the project, confirmed by a benefits analysis (benefit/cost) to justify the expenditures for total societal benefit over a 100-year time frame. But in ARC s case, he continued, there was little transparency by NJT, the project s chief promoter. It was an unhealthy mix of overvalued economic benefit, overstated revenues, and underestimated costs. The paradox, he opined, was although ARC was...not a field of honest numbers... and had...poor performance... it...still advanced. NEWSLETTER REPORT (Continued on Page 7) NJ-ARP DIRECTORS and OFFICERS, NJ-ARP OFFICE/NORTH 1219 Garden Street Hoboken, NJ , Ext. 2 Douglas John Bowen, Director NJ-ARP OFFICE/SOUTH 22 Hartford Road Medford, NJ (eves only) Carol Ann Thomas, Director NJ-ARP CONTACT NJ-ARP WEB SITE NJ-ARP LIVE NJ_ARP Albert L. Papp, Jr., President Jack May, Vice President Lester W. Wolff, Corresponding Secretary (10a-4p only) Douglas John Bowen, Director (days) (eves) Jim Ciacciarelli, Director Philip G. Craig, Director Jack McDougal, Director Carol Ann Thomas, Director (days) (eves) Leonard Resto, Treasurer Paul Mulligan, Cape May rep (eves only) Daniel Kerwin, Middlesex rep (eves only) William Armstrong, Monmouth rep (eves only) George Musser, Jr. Montclair/Boonton rep (eves only) Jishnu Mukerji, Morris rep (eves only) Gary Johnson, Northeast Corridor rep Joe Versaggi, Raritan Valley rep (eves only) Orrin Getz, Rockland rep (eves only) Tim Apgar, Sussex rep John Dragseth, Membership Offi cer Rose M. Heck, Government Affairs December 16, 2011, Page 2

3 Reprinted from The Star-Ledger, Monday, November 21, 2011 ARC rail tunnel s high price tag, financial impact criticized at transportation forum By MIKE FRASSINELLI NEWARK Had New Jersey not pulled the plug on it, the ARC commuter train tunnel to New York City would have been a transportation Frankenstein that crippled the state with debt, siphoned money intended for crumbling roads and bridges, and failed to take riders where they wanted to go. That was the dire scenario described today by state Transportation Commissioner Jim Simpson during a Newark Regional Business Partnership transportation symposium. The tunnel project was sucking the life out of the rest of the system and the state, Simpson said from the top floor of One Newark Center, in front of big windows that framed the Manhattan skyline and North Jersey s extensive network of roads, rails, bridges and runways...you d have to shut the Pulaski Skyway and shut the Wittpenn Bridge. As New Jersey considers a pair of alternatives to the Access to the Region s Core tunnel terminated by Gov. Chris Christie, Simpson provided an insider s view of why the tunnel was killed 13 months ago. Critics contended Christie buried the tunnel so he could divert money to the state s nearly broke Transportation Trust Fund which pays for road and bridge repairs and transit projects and keep his pledge not to raise New Jersey s relatively low gas tax. On the table is a proposal by Amtrak to build the Gateway Tunnel from Secaucus to an expanded New York Penn Station and a plan by New York City to extend its No. 7 subway train to Secaucus. Both proposals would provide the train connections in Manhattan that the ARC project lacked. The ARC tunnel was to go from Secaucus to a station deep under West 34th Street in Manhattan. But it wasn t always that way. Simpson, who supported the ARC tunnel when he headed the Federal Transit Administration before arriving two years ago to New Jersey, said the tunnel initially was going to cost $6 billion and include a connection to New York Penn Station. He said he offered another $500 million in federal money to take the project to the East Side of Manhattan, relieving overcrowded New York Penn Station and taking half the Jersey commuters where they really wanted to go. But New Jersey officials were not interested in changing the scope of the project and New York officials gave excuses about why an East Side connection wouldn t work, mentioning unions and the differences between powering train cars by overhead wires and the third rail, Simpson said. Even so, he said, he still supported the project because it at least had a connection to New York Penn Station. The project cost grew to $8.7 billion. Then, overnight, Simpson said, the Penn Station connection was dropped because of cost. In addition, New York officials were unwilling to accommodate the ARC project by moving the tracks 15 feet for their No. 7 subway extension project, Simpson said, By the time Christie took a closer look at the project last year, during his first year in office, the project was still estimated to cost $8.7 billion even though Simpson said the feds knew that the project was $13 billion. New Jersey was on the hook for $2.7 billion plus anything above the $8.7 billion estimate. The price was around $13 billion, if everything went right and nothing goes right, Simpson said. So you re talking a $16 billion to $18 billion project for the ARC project. You start to do the math on how much the subsidy is per transit rider and per commuter, you re talking a half-million, $700,000 per transit rider. Other speakers at the symposium included NJ Transit s Steve Santoro, who described construction projects and customer service efforts at the agency, and Amtrak s Drew Galloway, who outlined the Gateway Tunnel and the importance of high-speed rail to the bustling corridor between Boston and Washington, D.C. NJ Transit Historical Revisionism. We Could Have Written Some of the Above. NJ-ARP s viewpoint for which we were lambasted by many so-called rail advocates on what became of the original ARC project (or, as our late member Al Cafi ero referred to it: The Tunnel to Nowhere Useful ) has, for all intents and purposes, been affi rmed by New Jersey Transit s own (revisionist) take on it. Even state Transportation Commissioner James Simpson, as noted above, stressed the incremental slippage of the project from a regional rail project that was part of Amtrak s most viable and profi table operation, into a private two-track rail tunnel for New Jersey Transit that would lead into a three-over-three track terminus 200 feet below Macy s basement. While the scope of the ARC project continually degenerated, the cost estimates for its completion escalated 300% from $6 billion to as high as $18 billion when you added on the required elements (such as Portal Bridge) without which the project could not have properly functioned. What still frustrates us today after ARC s demise, is that in testimony to Commissioner Simpson and the NJ Transit Board, NJ-ARP s Al Papp and others kept emphasizing the project s many defects with no acknowledgement from any members of the Board. NEWSLETTER REPORT December 16, 2011, Page 3

4 Good News/Bad News for Amtrak, says NARP VP at NJ-ARP Annual Meeting Sean-Jeans Gail, Vice President of NARP gave a presentation updating what is happening with passenger rail in our nation s capital. The bad news is that congress is decreasing Amtrak funding. The good news is that for the first time ever, Amtrak has carried thirty million plus passengers in a year. Congress take: Do more with less! That policy which was anticipated by Mr. Gail, was clearly demonstrated in the week after the meeting when Congress came up with $1.4 billion to keep Amtrak running, but voted to cut all of the $8 billion in HSR funds requested by President Obama. Mr. Gail also spoke about high-speed rail (HSR) informing us that the California HSR project is running into political problems, mainly because the $48 billion estimated cost (in 2008 dollars) has now risen to a $98 billion estimated completion cost (in 2033 dollars). That message, unfortunately, is comparing 2008 dollars to 2033 dollars. Nonetheless, it s still a lot more money. Mr. Gail concluded his presentation by stating that NARP is making an effort to reach out for new members and a younger demographic by using social media. A question and answer period followed his interesting and informative presentation. Amtrak NEC AVP Drew Galloway Unveils Next Gen HSR and Much More Drew Galloway is a veteran on the NEC, first as an NJT employee, now as Amtrak s AVP for Northeast Corridor Infrastructure and Investment Development. He s also a veteran of the ARC wars, having been at the first meeting when there were an astounding 136 alternatives to narrow down. Mr. Galloway shared some good Amtrak news first. Amtrak now has 73% of the New York to Washington, DC air-rail market and 93% of the Philadelphia-DC market. Projections advise that Amtrak will conservatively have a 37% increase in train miles in the Boston-DC (NEC) corridor and a 60% increase in passengers by Amtrak has initiated studies to advance a new very high speed network, referred to as the Next Generation HSR system, to operate between Boston, MA and Washington, DC. at sustained operations of mph, achieving travel times of approximately 1.5 hours each between Boston and New York and New York to Washington. First segments of new alignments could be in place by 2023 with the full network completed in Several early action phases are in development, with expansion of the existing ACELA fleet to double the New York to Washington frequencies among the most visible changes. Designs for 160 mph trainsets are now being prepared to enable procurement of new equipment by Making improvements to the existing NEC in the shorter term brings HSR benefits to the region before all the new HSR alignments are constructed. Amtrak expects to release an update of the plan by the end of this year. A technical challenge is the expected issuance of new regulations governing operations of very high speed lines by the FRA. It is anticipated the FRA is going to propose new rules for a Tier III train vehicle. Currently Tier I standards permit 125 mph maximum operations and Tier II at 160 mph (ACELA is the only Tier II equipment in existence). The new Tier III standard will allow a maximum 220 mph. One caveat: Shared operations with Tier III trains and other train classes will be limited to Tier 1 speeds (125 mph). This is why, in order for the Next Gen system to be successful, most of the NEC infrastructure will have to be rebuilt to support new alignments. Amtrak has hired consultants to come up with an integrated business plan (due in May, 2012) for the HSR operation and master plan elements. Current estimates are that between 2016 and 2040 the infrastructure and fleet will cost $116 billion for the HSR elements and approximately $40 billion for the master plan components. They project that the HSR will generate an above-track annual surplus of $1,297,000,000. One of the first infrastructure upgrades is already funded and that is the Trenton to New Brunswick segment of the NEC. The catenaries will be replaced with constant tension catenaries and new substations will be built in Hamilton Township and Metuchen. Of prime importance, Metuchen will also see a new frequency converter built for the NEC with future improvements including a $700 million two-track Portal (North) Bridge. It is being designed to accommodate flyovers and space allocated for a future Portal (South) Bridge which is part of Amtrak s Gateway program. We were also advised that Amtrak is restructuring its business into five business lines, the first being for the Northeast Corridor. Finally, Mr. Galloway told us that the UIC 8th World Congress will be taking place in Philadelphia from July 10 to 13, This prestigious conference is expected to generate a large amount of travel to Philadelphia and additional business for Amtrak s NEC. After finishing this tantalizing glimpse into the future Mr. Galloway took questions from our members Feeling a sensation of deja vu? Some of our annual meeting reporting may seem familiar. That meeting is usually held in September or October and is usually covered in the October NEWSLETTER REPORT that goes to all NJ-ARP members. This year s meeting was held on November 12. Some reporting already appeared in the November NJ-ARP NEWSLETTER PLUS! issued to Sustaining and Patron members. NJ-ARP NEWSLETTER REPORT Editor: Douglas John Bowen Assistant Editors: Leonard Resto, Lester W. Wolff Production: Lester W. Wolff Additional reporting this month by Joe Versaggi The New Jersey Association of Railroad Passengers, founded in 1980, is closely allied with the National Association of Railroad Passengers, based in Washington, D.C. [(202) ]. NEWSLETTER REPORT December 16, 2011, Page 4

5 A Look Back 15 Years: So Much Accomplished So Much Still to Do! The end of the year is always a good time to reflect on what has passed and to plan what one hopes will come to pass. To see where we have been, we decided to take a look back at the December 18, 1996 issue of our NEWSLETTER REPORT. Apparently 1996 was a good year for NJ-ARP as our then President, Douglas Bowen, reported. The Kearny Connection, 29 years (or more) in the making, finally opened enabling Midtown Direct service. Cape May Seashore Lines (CMSL) returned rail passenger service to Cape May County after 14 years. Light rail transit plans moved ahead for a Camden- Trenton link, after NIMBYs and one-seat ride advocates scuttled plans for a Gloucester-Camden-Burlington light rail line. NJ-ARP devoted money and expertise to the project that would become the RiverLINE, in full support of Burlington County. LRT also moved ahead for Hudson-Bergen, with a design, build, operate and maintain (DBOM) contract approved in August. This project more than any other, was NJ-ARP s in all but name. Plans for extending the Newark City LRT continued to advance, with equipment to be ordered in conjunction with Hudson-Bergen. NJ-ARP worked diligently to support New Jersey Transit on this project. The Montclair Connection, assaulted by NIMBYs and tied up in court, did survive to become a reality because NJT hung tough, and NJ-ARP was there with it. The ex-jersey Central secondary line, through the Pine Barrens, was purchased that year by the state, using 1989 bond issue money secured by (you guessed it) NJ-ARP through intensive lobbying, and by voter approval at the ballot box. Of course, there were also setbacks including the debut of the costly Newark Airport monorail that thwarted any cohesive airport rail access plan, and the frustration of battling NIMBY know-nothings in Middlesex County, determined to deny others rail passenger service Bowen wrote: And there s always 1997 and beyond. Will future years grant us favor as 1996 did? We doubt it. Like our ARP sisters, NJ-ARP may be in for a rough ride. Those were prophetic words. MOM is still on a backburner ; HBLRT still doesn t have any B for Bergen service, the Newark monorail, now dubbed Air Train is still woefully inadequate even with the addition of the Northeast Corridor rail station at the airport, the Lackawanna Cut-Off is finally getting a few miles closer to Pennsylvania but future prospects look dim, PATH/Lex a good idea never came to pass, and perhaps Gateway or 7 to Secaucus may rise out of the ashes of the ARC tunnels debacle was indeed a landmark year. NJ-ARP has done a lot of work over the intervening decade-and-a-half, and will need to do a lot more in the coming years. We couldn t have done any of it without the support of YOU, our members nor without the countless hours of work done by our volunteers. To you and to them, we offer our heartfelt thanks and best wishes for continued success in all of our collective efforts. Feds spend more in one year for highways ($40 Billion) than in 40 Years for Amtrak In a December 5, 2011 article, political fact-check organization Politifact has affirmed the statistic that highway spending for 2010 exceeded 40 years of spending for Amtrak. The federal government spent more on highways in 2010 than it has on Amtrak in its entire history. The organization checked the fact after Sen. Frank Lautenberg, D-N.J., asserted it in an interview with the New Orleans Times-Picayune. Politifact checked with Amtrak and the Federal Highway Administration to verify Lautenberg s claim. It found that, from Amtrak s launch in 1971 until 2011, Congress spent $37.9 billion on Amtrak. By comparison, it spent more than $40 billion on highways in Lautenberg s statement was, Last year we spent more than $40 billion on highways. And Lord knows we need that. But that s more than we spent on Amtrak in its entire 40-year history. Politifact is a nonpartisan fact-checking organization that rates statements using its truth-o-meter, which ranges from true to pants on fire. Lautenberg s claim won the award for being true. Recent articles (and videos) of interest for NJ-ARP Members DATE SOURCE SUBJECT WEB LINK Philadelphia Inquirer DVRP Disbands Regional Citizens Committee [Editor s Note: NJ-ARP Director Carol Ann Thomas, and a member of the Regional Citizens Committee is quoted.] subchat.com New 34 St/11th Ave station-video Chicago Sun Times New CTA cars too much like NYC s New York Times High Line inspires Low Line under Delancey St. r=2&pagewanted=all theatlanticcities.com Can higher fares save public transit? youtube.com ALP45-DP Test run on Atlantic City Line-VIDEO subchat.com Essex St. Trolly Terminal (Future Low Line?)-VIDEO NEWSLETTER REPORT December 16, 2011, Page 5

6 A Look At NJ Transit s Latest Ridership Figures The latest quarterly analysis of rail ridership released by New Jersey Transit offers some very interesting information as analyzed by NJ-ARP s Raritan Rep, Joe Versaggi. Ridership for NJT Rail decreased by 2.4%. By comparison, the LIRR decreased 1.8%, Metro-North increased 1.7% and PATH increased 3.2%. Joe attributes this to the more modest fare increase that MTA had, that didn t annihilate off-peak usage. (Remember, NJT s off-peak fare was eliminated creating a 46% increase for riders.) NJ Transit stated that the average rail fare hike was 29.1%. So much for NJT s continuous media propaganda (since the fare hike) insisting that the hike averaged 22%. Also so much for them splitting hairs with NJ-ARP President Al Papp when he said the rate hike was 25% on a News 12 interview earlier this year. There was a very interesting phenomenon for offpeak usage on some divisions. Joe reports that the M&E and NJCL, both with excruciatingly, embarrassingly slow services had markedly different statistics. The NJCL ridership was devastated with a 7.8% decline, while the M&E was essentially unaffected, down only 0.7%. Inter-branch Local ridership (a subset of local) is up 6%. Some of that is via Secaucus Junction, which has none of the ingenuity of LIRR s Jamaica Station where even threeway transfers are very easy whereas in Secaucus interbranch travel time can be 2 to 4 times as long as driving. Joe concludes that ridership here in New Jersey is far more elastic than NJ Transit thinks. Where riders see an advantage, whether it be inter-branch fares (you pay only for the higher priced branch of the two), or snubbing NJ Transit for Secaucus Junction or Harrison parking, or the economy of the uptown PATH branch over the Northeast Corridor fares, they will take advantage. OTHER HIGHLIGHTS: 45% of NJT s total rail riders are not originating or terminating in Manhattan. Weekday average ridership is down 2.2% but declines were higher on the one-seat ride NEC line. The declines were even higher on the one-seat ride stations of the NJCL. (NJCL ridership is now overwhelmingly in the electrified portion of the line [Long Branch and north]). All other lines had declines less than the average except for the Main-Bergen, which actually saw an increase in passengers. DECLINES BY DESTINATION: NY-Penn Station -1.7% Hoboken -2.4% Newark -1.9% (PATH went up, the average holds up at Newark, went up even more at 33rd St) Local Stations -4.9% but Inter-branch Local (a subset of local stations) is up 6% MAIN-BERGEN LINE NY-Penn Station: 9,200 (just 35%) Newark 400 (Penn or Broad not specified) Hoboken 13,600 (still 52%) Local Stations 3,000 TOTAL 26,200 NEWARK AIRPORT Rather than increase fares by 25% for NYPS passengers, NJT lowered them 17% (from $15.00 to $12.50), producing a relative fare cut of 43%. Ridership total up 11.5%, ridership from NYPS is up 17.5%, Revenue is down by only $100,000 per quarter. SECAUCUS JUNCTION Ridership up 1.7%. Now 19,860--can t crack 20,000 NJT credits the parking facility. (Did these people come from NEC & NJCL to populate parking lot?) Route 9 bus ridership figures are also down. Sources of ridership that went up more than average: NEC, Raritan, M&E, Main-Bergen, Montclair-Boonton, Dinky. All except the NEC require one or more transfers LARGEST INTRASTATE MARKETS Newark Trenton New Brunswick (though down 11.4%) SOME FOOD FOR THOUGHT: In a follow-up to your editor, Joe posited the following two theories. If the 43% relative cut in NY-Penn Station to Newark Airport fare led to nearly flat revenue, what would have happened had off-peak round trip fares not increased by 46%, but remained at 1.5 times the one-way fare? LIRR & MNRR once lowered off peak discounts (on one ways, no less) from 25 to 20%. They found that selfdefeating. So it has been 28% for a number of years now. Add another 15% discount for the off-peak 10-trip, good for 6 months, that can be passed around a small group. Look at crowds on summer weekend Montauk trains, especially with the deeply discounted Fire Island travel packages, and then look at the comparatively pathetic loads on the weekend Bay Head shuttles, whereas thru trains from Newark or Hoboken can no longer be justified. It would be interesting to see if New Jersey Transit would even consider to try testing the Metro North and Long Island Rail Road experiment to determine if restoring off-peak fares might be revenue positive for NJT. NEWSLETTER REPORT December 16, 2011, Page 6

7 President s Perspective (Continued from page 2) And then he dropped the proverbial bombshell. And that was that he was one of the chief proponents that argued (unpersuasively as it happened) for the track extension from Penn Station to Grand Central Terinal. Simpson explained that half of all NJ Transit riders wanted to go to the east side and that the rail extension would save them 40 minutes a day each way. Best of all, the connection would yield some $15 billion in benefits and cost around $2 billion, making it very attractive to advance. (Sounds familiar doesn t it? While not tooting our own horn, NJ-ARP said this over and over in public hearings, to the NJT Board and, in fact, to everyone who would lend us an ear.) The final straw occurred when NJT removed the track connection between the proposed new tunnels and the existing platforms at New York Penn in mid-2007, in essence removing any Amtrak participation in the new bores. Despite meetings Simpson had at various times when he was in Washington, and later in Trenton, to realign the route extension of MTA s No. 7 subway to permit the connection s restoration, the project moved ahaed relentlessly. Simpson interacted with then-new Jersey Gov. Jon Corzine, then-state Transportation Commissioner Kris Kolluri, then-new York Gov. Eliot Spitzer, New Jersey U.S. Senators Lautenberg and Menendez, the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey, the FRA, Amtrak, New York City, and MTA officialdom, among others. In 2006, when the cost of ARC was $6.0 billion (excluding the Portal Bridge project which was administered by the Federal Railroad Administration). Simpson, in his capacity as FTA Administrator, said that he was willing to add another $500 million to make the Penn Station to Grand Central connection a reality. But...the MTA could care less. There were union problems, catenary versus third rail technical impediments, real estate acquisition difficulties and the big kahuna - MONEY! New York just would NOT contribute any money to the project; NJ-ARP was told on countless occasions that both New York City and state believed (convinced themselves?) that their contribution was being accounted for by the bi-state PANY/NJ, which had stated its intention to kick in $3.0 billion. Uh Huh. Money. Follow the money as Deep Throat said in All the President s Men. Well for ARC, Simpson said, it...ceased to be a great project... when it escalated from $6.0 billion to $8.7 billion to $13.5 billion. Most projects...escalate 45%... Simpson went on but ARC just kept climbing ever upward and...the stakeholders never asked the cost... because...people had no skin in the game. Further, Nobody asked about the operating cost of ARC. (Well, not quite true, Mr. Simpson. NJ-ARP, Joe Clift and George Haikalis quoted from the 2003 MIS Summary Report paragraph 11.2, Operating and Maintenance Costs, where Alternative G was shown to be the LEAST costly to run. But, hey! Who s crowing at this point? Well, I guess NJ-ARP is because, drum roll, please! - We were RIGHT all along and for the RIGHT reasons and in the RIGHT venues. So okay. We re crowing vociferously and without remorse because, I ll suggest, we have a good RIGHT to do so!) Could the project have been saved? Well Commissioner Simpson suggested some cures. Among them (in the order Simpson presented them), risk and accountability needs to be defined. He noted that while projects are long lasting; most managers are long gone by the time the time the project can be judged a success or failure. Safety needs to be acknowledged and dealt with. Public and private responsibility must be rearranged with the roles of each clearly laid out. Finally, government s conflicting roles as promoters of a particular project and as the guardian of the taxpayer has to be separated. This last one was a political minefield; during the pendency of ARC, the various rail advocacy organizations performed the oversight role and, since nature abhors a vacuum, performed the role that one of the political parties should have engaged in. But since ARC spanned many state administrations, and given other New Jersey state issues of more importance to the voter took precedence, it literally sank below (almost) every elected leader s radar like a stealthy submarine that plowed ever onward oblivious to the shoals and sandbars that laid ahead. Until the summer of 2010 when the press and media awoke from their slumber. That story is well known by all who read this NEWSLETTER REPORT regularly and we ll let it stop there. One final postscript. I did raise a question during the Q&A session and asked the Commissioner to use his good offices to obtain the long sought after 1,600 page background document that led to the 2003 publication of the ARC Major Investment Study (MIS) Summary Report that compared the three final project alternatives. Previously, he had asked me at a November 2010 NJT Board Meeting, after I raised the issue at that time, to submit a New Jersey Open Public Records Act (OPRA) request to state government. This I dutifully did and received a letter from the Office of the Attorney General, dated December 14, 2010, the subject of which was Re: OPRA Request No. 330 dated December 9, 2010 At the TRF breakfast, I held up the letter, in fact gave a copy to the Commissioner, as well as holding up a copy of the 2003 Summary Report, for all to see. I quote the final paragraph from the AG s letter here without comment: It is our understanding that the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey (the Port Authority ) may have maintained records pertaining to the ARC MIS Summary Report; however, we understand that the Port Authority s file was destroyed as a result of the terror attacks on September 11, Merry Christmas and a Happy Holiday to you and yours. You did one heck of a job in I thank all of you personally for your long and tireless involvement; all of us made and are making a difference. With your help, let it continue unabated. Albert L. Papp, Jr NEWSLETTER REPORT December 16, 2011, Page 7

8 NJT NEW MLVs CARS AND ALP45-DM LOCOS SUBJECT TO DERAILMENTS In late breaking news, The Montreal Gazette reports that one of AMT s new dual-mode locomotives, put into service just three weeks earlier on the Deux-Montagnes line, derailed on Dec. 9 in Montreal s Central Station. The locomotive is identical to the ALP45-DMs ordered by New Jersey Transit to enable one-engine rides from diesel territory into New York s Penn Station. Thankfully the derailment occurred at slow speed and there we no injuries, but the incident brings up Safety Question of Diesel Fuel Tanks in Tunnels: The Transportation Safety Board of Canada is investigating and we are sure that NJ Transit will be following this development with interest as will NJ-ARP. The full story may be found at ils+underground/ /story.html. There have also been (officially unconfirmed) Reports of MLV derailment problems with NJT s large new fleet of Multi-Level cars. Sources say there have been 7 minor drerailments to date two in Hoboken, two in Raritan, two in Bay Head Yard and one in Summit on operating tracks. The Derailments all had same scenario: attempting to negotiate a switch - crossover with #10 frogs. Speculation is that cars wound up pulling each other off the track. Another consensus has recently developed concerning the lateral spring arrangement in the truck side-frames being too stiff to allow the trucks to negotiate switches with #10 frogs. We will report on further developments in upcoming issues. NJ-ARP Photos by Douglas John Bowen A NY Waterway ferry boat awaits morning passengers headed for lower Manhattan on Dec. 7, 2011, even before official ceremonies took place heralding the return of revenue ferry service out of Hoboken Terminal for the first time since Tickets and information for the repositioned ferry service are available at the southern end of the ferry concourse. Departure boards debuting on Dec. 7 showed two active ferry slips in operation, though fi ve are ready for eventual service. A reopened passenger corridor leads from inside the ferry concourse directly into the terminal s main waiting room, offering a direct, effective weather-protected transfer to trains and PATH (if not to HBLRT). NEWSLETTER REPORT December 16, 2011, Page 8

9 NJ Transit SCORECARD Answers Some Questions; Raises Others New Jersey Transit has released another edition of its SCORECARD Customer Satisfaction Survey. The survey may be accessed on NJT s website at com/var/var_servlet.srv?hdnpageaction=surveysystemto The survey shows on the System tab that Facilities, Vehicles, Payment Options, Safety, Security and even Communications (but not during service disruptions) all seemed to receive more than satisfactory ratings. Other areas do need some improvement. One question NJ-ARP has regarding the survey results is how does NJT pick and choose their key driver attribute when deciding what needs to improve. For example: On-time Performance scores a 5.0 and NJT determines that it needs to improve while Weekend/ Holiday Schedules scores 4.6 and NJT seems to think that this is okay sort of proving what we ve suspected for quite a while that NJT has very little or no interest in serving its off-peak and occasional riders. Other key driver attributes include Communications During and Handling of Service Disruptions, On-Time Performance, and Fares. NJ-ARP offers some suggestions to improve ratings. 1) Restore an off-peak fare (preferably one-way, not round trip) to offset the 46% increase of the last fare hike. With proper marketing (similar to New York s MTA), NJT would increase ridership and increase positive perception. 2) Improve off-peak headway. Two hour headway is not conducive to attracting discretionary customers. 3) Stop the practice of running consists during off-peak with more than half the cars closed off sometimes while passengers have to cram themselves into middle seats. It gives riders impressions that either a) NJT doesn t care about offpeak passengers; or b) NJT conductors are lazy; or both. Finally, we say Thanks! to NJT for implementing the SCORECARD program to get the pulse of its customers. In our November NEWSLETTER PLUS! we asked NJ Transit to consider LRT add-ons be made available for rail tickets. In an on Nov. 22 NJ-ARP member Bob White had some additional good suggestions. Hi Les. Happy Thanksgiving! Lots of interesting news from NJ-ARP. Letter to the Editor One possibility not mentioned: MTA has Uni-Tickets, including a double-ended Uni-Ticket that serves as a monthly Connecticut Transit bus ticket, a Metro-North ticket and a Metrocard. An NJT commuter rail ticket and Metrocard has not been mentioned. Who says it can t be done? Bob WE RE NOT LOOKING TO WIN A POPULARITY CONTEST Many organizations ask you to join so they can become the most popular kid on the block. At NJ-ARP, we ask for your support because we believe we are the only statewide voice for those seeking better rail, light rail, ferry, bus, or even bicycle solutions. We re not an organization of cheerleaders who will just support anything that goes choo choo. Our membership includes volunteers, many of whom work within the transportation field, and are among the best and most diverse in New Jersey. Many testify at hearings held by NJ Transit, PATH, Amtrak, PATCO, and various other governmental agencies. We may not always be the most popular voice at these meetings (as witnessed by the recent ARC-Hudson River tunnels debacle), but we are the most steadfast in being on the forefront in advocating both intermodal and regional transportation solutions that are cost effective and that promote economic development. For more than thirty years NJ-ARP has been the statewide voice for those seeking better transportation solutions. We re funded solely by our membership dollars. Join NJ-ARP and help us secure a better transportation network for all of New Jersey and surrounding areas. [ ] Single $25 USPS $20 [ ] Family $35 USPS $30 [ ] Sustaining $60 USPS $50 [ ] Patron $100 [ ] Student/Senior $15 USPS $10 (Up to 3 People) Enclosed is $ for membership(s) in NJ-ARP. Name Address City/State Zip Phone (day) (eve) Send publications via: Regular U.S.P.S. Mail Both Please mail this coupon with membership fee to NJ-ARP, P.O. Box 68, Chatham, N.J news arp NEWSLETTER REPORT December 16, 2011, Page 9

10 Philip G. Craig Elected to NJ-ARP Board of Directors At the commencement of our annual meeting on November 12, the 37 attendees were greeted by President Papp and told that for the first time in memory we were having a contested election with ten candidates running for 8 seats. After ballots were tallied by Treasurer Len Resto, he announced the results. The 2012 Board will be Doug Bowen, Jim Ciacciarelli, Phil Craig, Jack May, Jack McDougal, Al Papp, Carol Ann Thomas, and Les Wolff. President Papp congratulated the winners and encouraged the candidates who were not elected to continue their good work for the organization and run again next year. Middlesex Opts for Bus Shuttles; MOM Still on Back Burner NJ-ARP Middlesex Representative Daniel Kerwin reports that the County still has no comprehensive transportation plan to alleviate its increasing road congestion. While Monmouth-Ocean-Middlesex (MOM) rail lingers on a back burner perhaps for another decade, as if over a quarter of a century hasn t been long enough Middlesex s temporary solution is bus shuttles. Encouraged by reports of some success with the Jamesburg to Princeton Junction (and downtown Princeton) shuttle, the county has availed itself of additional federal three year grants to start up another shuttle this one connecting Old Bridge and Sayreville to the South Amboy transportation center. The County hopes after the three year grants expire, that local economic conditions for the various municipalities will be better and they will pick up the cost of operating these services. Sadly, we ve seen many similar shuttle services here in New Jersey eliminated once federal or state funding evaporates. While NJ-ARP supports these efforts in inter-modality, they are drop in the bucket solutions to addressing the need for a real regional transportation link not only to and from New York City but to the largest employment center in the County New Brunswick, and to all the other employment and transportation centers along the Northeast Corridor such as Metropark, Newark Airport, Newark, Trenton, Burlington County (via RiverLINE) and Philadelphia (via SEPTA). The residents of Middlesex, Ocean and Monmouth counties have waited too long for the obvious solution: MOM (Monmouth-Ocean-Middlesex) Rail. MOM will not only provide transportation solutions, but if other new or resurrected rail lines are any indicator an economic stimulator to business and real estate interests. The delays must stop. The time for action is now! HBLRT Northern DEIS Released. As this issue goes to press, the long-awaited DEIS for the HBLRT Northern Valley branch has been released on line at BEST WISHES TO ALL OF OUR READERS AND THEIR FAMILIES FOR JOYFUL HOLIDAYS AND A HEALTHY AND HAPPY NEW YEAR! ARTHUR L. REUBEN ADVOCATE FOR RAIL TRANSIT (ART) AWARD WINNERS 1988: William P. Armstrong 1989: William R. Wright 1990: Anthony Perl 1991: Orrin Getz 1992: Lester W. Wolff 1993: Phyllis Elston 1994: James C. Greller 1995: Martin Gill 1996: Paul Mulligan 1997: Carol Ann Thomas 1998: Daniel Kerwin 1999: Rose M. Heck 2000: Greg Bender 2001: Win Greenleaf 2002: Robert Scheurle 2003: Albert L. Papp, Jr. 2004: William R. Wrigh t 2005: Leonard Resto 2006: Lester W. Wolff 2007: Orrin Getz 2008: Jack May 2009: Phil G. Craig 2010: Albert L. Papp, Jr. 2011: JOE VERSAGGI NJ-ARP Photo by Jim Ciacciarelli Joe Versaggi Wins 2011 Art Award Joe Versaggi, shown above at our annual meeting in Bordentown, NJ on November 12, holding his award, is an invaluable source of information to NJ-ARP on rail equipment and service patterns. Additionally, Joe has maintained membership records and renewals for us for over a decade. You ve seen his work here periodically in graphic form as he tracks our legislators to see how pro (or anti) rail they are. You ve also seen some of his letters prodding NJ Transit for better intermodal connections or for restoration of off-peak fares. He also writes to local media about other agencies when problems arise. Joe was truly surprised at receiving this richly deserved honor. Congratulations! NEWSLETTER REPORT December 16, 2011, Page 10