Select Committee on NJ Transit to Hold Public Hearing
Select Committee on NJ Transit to Hold Public Hearing
Trenton– The special committee formed to investigate NJ Transit will hold a public hearing next week, Senate President Steve Sweeney said today. The hearing, by the Senate Select Committee on New Jersey Transit, will provide a forum for Transit users to provide input on the service and operations of the third largest public transportation system in the country.
The hearing, open to public participation, will be held Wednesday, November 13th from 5 p.m. – 7p.m. at the Hoboken Station, 1 Hudson Pl., Hoboken, N.J. 07030.
“We want to give commuters and other passengers the opportunity to provide input on the problems they experience and their ideas on how the service can be improved,” said Senator Sweeney, who is chairing the Select Committee. “They rely on the trains and busses for their daily commutes and to travel throughout the state, so they should be part of the solution.”
The special committee was established to investigate the causes of the operational and service problems that continue to plague the state’s central rail and bus system and to develop an action plan to turn around the embattled agency.
NJ Transit trains are four times as likely to be cancelled as Long Island Railroad and Metro North trains that serve New York and Connecticut suburbs, and NJ Transit’s accident and breakdown rate is worse than other major railroads. The agency has struggled to hire enough bus drivers, and breakdowns of old buses are a frequent problem.
The bipartisan panel includes: Senator Sweeney (D-Gloucester/Salem/Cumberland), Senate Majority Leader Loretta Weinberg (D-Bergen), Deputy Majority Leader Sandra Cunningham (D-Hudson), Senate Transportation Committee Chair Patrick Diegnan (D-Middlesex), Senator Joe Cryan (D-Union), Senate Republican Leader Tom Kean (R-Morris/Somerset/Union), Senator Kip Bateman (R-Hunterdon/Mercer/Middlesex/Somerset), and Senator Kristin Corrado (R-Bergen/Essex/Morris/Passaic).
The committee will hold additional hearings and roundtables, and conduct site visits.
