Advocates Challenge Murphy’s Transportation Pick

Trenton, NJ — EmpowerNJ* challenged Governor Murphy’s nomination on Friday of Francis O’Connor to be the next Commissioner of the NJ Department of Transportation (DOT) and chair of all the other major transportation agencies in the state including NJ Transit (NJT) and the Authority overseeing the Turnpike and Garden State Parkway.

“At a time when NJ Transit is in crisis and we need to dramatically increase and improve public transportation services and the safety of our streets, the Governor has instead chosen a highway executive whose only stated experience and expertise is collecting highway tolls,” said John Reichman, a member of Empower NJ’s steering committee. “The Senate needs to use its advice and consent powers to reject any nominee who lacks the experience, expertise and willingness to advocate for, improve and prioritize public transportation and safe streets.”

Transportation in New Jersey is in crisis due in no small part to Governor Murphy’s policies. Examples include:

• Refusing to provide dedicated funding for NJT operations;
• Raiding of NJT capital funds to cover operating expenses;
• Failing to comply with the recent NJT reform law to appoint/maintain an independent Board and consumer advocate;
• Proposing last week a double digit NJT fare hike, which will fall the hardest on those who can least afford it, while giving the wealthiest corporations a billion dollar tax break;
• Ignoring an approximate $800 million operating shortfall/fiscal cliff next year;
• Approving a plush, $440 million 25 year lease to move NJ Transit’s headquarters to a new building owned by the Governor’s donors when NJT could have remained in the building it already owns and spent only $58 million to make any needed improvements; and
• Pushing ahead with an unpopular $11 billion plan to expand the NJ Turnpike that only will increase traffic congestion and pollution. The $150 million that the State is spending to do design work on the Turnpike Expansion could have more than covered the increased fares the Governor is forcing NJT riders to incur.

“It’s now the Senate’s obligation to push back against these flawed policies and to determine whether Mr. O’Connor has the values, experience and expertise to run NJ DOT let alone be the Chairperson of NJ Transit,” concluded Reichman.

• Empower NJ is a coalition of over 120 citizen, faith, environmental and progressive groups in New Jersey stopping new dirty fossil fuel projects and securing a 100% clean energy economy to stop climate change, secure environmental justice and create better Its steering committee includes BlueWaveNJ, Clean Water Action, Delaware Riverkeeper Network, Don’t Gas the Meadowlands Coalition, Environment New Jersey and Food and Water Watch.