Lackawanna Coalition

advocating for rail passengers since 1979

Author: John Bobsin

  • Toll Collection: Not Free

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    John Bobsin

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    Transit users pay fares.  Highway users (sometimes) pay tolls.  Transit users have often wondered how much of the fares they pay go to the fare-collection system.  For highway tolls, now we have some idea of how much of the toll goes not to highway maintenance or construction, but simply to collect the toll itself. The…

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  • No-Transit Tappan Zee Controversy Continues

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    John Bobsin

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    The Tappan Zee Bridge has carried the New York Thruway across the Hudson River for 57 years.  Designed for 100,000 vehicles per day, it now carries 138,000, has no breakdown lanes, and fails to meet earthquake standards.  Everybody agrees that it’s obsolete, and there are plans afoot to build a new bridge or two, with…

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  • “Gateway” Project Gains Traction

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    John Bobsin

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    Increasingly, transportation experts and politicians are getting behind a new trans-Hudson rail tunnel plan, the so-called Gateway project, according to Steve Strunsky, reporting in the Star-Ledger (June 14). The catchier “Gateway” name isn’t the only advantage over the now-defunct Access to the Region’s Core (ARC) project, derided as “the stop in Macy’s basement”.  Like ARC,…

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  • June 14: PATH Closure Ends at 7 p.m.

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    John Bobsin

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    Conditions were returning to normal at about 7 p.m. on June 14, as PATH service to World Trade Center resumed following President Obama’s visit.  The service had been interrupted for about 4 hours as commuters sought alternative routes; NJ Transit was cross-honoring tickets among bus, NJT train, and PATH until 7:30 p.m.  Reportedly, a significant…

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  • MTA Chair Lhota Champions Cooperation

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    John Bobsin

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    Quoted on radio station WNYC (June 14), New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority chair Joseph Lhota says that there are solutions to the capacity limits at New York’s Penn Station—if the railroads using the busy terminal would cooperate more.  Lhota said there are three ways to increase capacity: longer platforms, more sharing of platforms among the…

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  • River Line Repairs Enter Final Stage

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    John Bobsin

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    In August 2011, Hurricane Irene struck the New Jersey area.  One of the casualties was the River Line light rail of NJ Transit, which operates between Trenton and Camden.  A hillside adjacent to the River Line tracks was extensively damaged, and the passing siding adjacent to the hillside was taken out of service.  Fortunately, the…

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  • New Bike Policy: NJT Gives Back, Takes Away

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    John Bobsin

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    Several months ago, NJ Transit modified its bicycle-on-board-trains policy to prohibit use of bicycles at stations that do not have high-level platforms; this ended bike use at many popular stations that lack high-level platforms, including the Hoboken Terminal.  An outcry from bicyclists ensued; now NJT has updated their policy).  However, the new policy, available as…

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  • Weekend Festivals Spark High Ridership

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    John Bobsin

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    The weekend of May 19–20, boosted by several music festivals, resulted in the second-highest train ridership totals in NJ Transit’s history, according to Mike Frassinelli, reporting in the Star-Ledger (May 23).  The Bamboozle music fest in Asbury Park and the Electric Daisy Carnival in East Rutherford, together with the Devils hockey playoff game on Saturday, allowed…

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  • 11 Bus Lines Targeted for Cutbacks

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    John Bobsin

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    As a result of a first-of-its-kind exercise for NJ Transit, the agency is proposing cuts in 11 bus lines, which NJT says are little-used compared to the majority of its bus services; Mike Frassinelli reported the proposed cuts in the Star-Ledger (May 15).  NJT’s review of its bus operations involved an ”inward look” using metrics…

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  • Bicycle Policy Under Review

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    John Bobsin

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    More than two years ago, NJ Transit changed its policy on the use of trains by bicyclists, publishing (in timetables) rules that restricted boarding or leaving trains with bicycles to stations with high-level platforms: it’s more difficult and perhaps less safe to do this at stations with low-level platforms, which requires the cyclist to carry…

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