Lackawanna Coalition

advocating for rail passengers since 1979

Category: Railgram

  • April Brings a Full NJ Transit Board:
    James Adams Cancelled

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    Sally Jane Gellert

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    When in-person board meetings resume in April, there will be a full 13 members present (or at least 10: 3 individuals are nominated, not directly appointed, and need Senate confirmation). Missing from the dais will be current board member James Adams, who was not reappointed. The reason given is the end of his term (Dec.…

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  • A Missed Opportunity

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    Sally Jane Gellert

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    For the past few years, we have watched the so-called NJ Transit “reform” legislation wind its way through the Trenton legislature. Our concerns about NJ Transit’s priorities, practices, and policies are ongoing, and we did not see that the legislation includes the sort of changes needed. True, the newest version has the purported “customer advocate”…

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  • Report from the Chair, Mar./Apr. 2022

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    Sally Jane Gellert

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    We were pleased to see Board Member James Adams again take seriously his responsibility to oversee the NJ Transit budget, and vote against the typically opaque presentation. From charts that mislead (e.g., showing claimed “savings” and showing only tips of the bars, which hides the actual magnitude), to larger-than-previous transfers from capital to operating costs,…

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  • Who in Congress Represents You Now?

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    Webweaver

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    After the 10-year census, states’ populations are calculated and Congressional representatives are redistributed across the United States. Accordingly, every 10 years, a new map for New Jersey’s Congressional districts is drawn. The 2022-2031 Congressional redistricting map was adopted on December 22, 2021. Many New Jersey residents will find that their Congressional Representative has changed. Go…

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  • AmeriStar Rail: More Service on the NEC, Rail Plans for LaGuardia

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    Webweaver

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    As we learned at our November, meeting, there could be a lot more trains on Amtrak’s Northeast Corridor (NEC) with AmeriStar Rail’s operating plan (www.ameristarrail.com/impact). Chief Operating Officer Scott R. Spencer presented that plan to us, saying that the NEC is currently underutilized. The restructured plan for intercity trains would not affect NJ Transit (including…

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  • Report from the Chair, Jan./Feb. 2022

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    Sally Jane Gellert

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    The Lackawanna Coalition and the N.J. Rail Passengers’ Association have both argued that the proposed “Customer Advocate” position in the NJ Transit reform bill is erroneously and misleadingly named, and our position has itself caused some confusion. Take a look at the dictionary definition of the word advocate (from dictionary.com) Advocate, noun: a person who…

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  • Accomplishments over the Past Year

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    Webweaver

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    testified (both David Peter Alan and Sally Jane Gellert) at Transit Equity Day, Feb. 4, hearings organized by the Labor Network for Sustainability, stressing the needs of the transit-dependent and the value of public transit for a healthy environment encouraged NJ Transit to open its larger stations as vaccination sites, which they did in August…

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  • A Tribute to Mr. G.

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    Sally Jane Gellert

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    We read in the Star-Ledger of the passing of Mr. Russell Graddy, “Mr. G.”, whom we had met in the course of his fight for justice from NJ Transit.  Over 2 or 3 years, he and his group of dedicated supporters showed up at each board meeting in “Justice for Mr. G.” T-shirts, speaking truth…

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  • Report from the Chair, Nov./Dec. 2021

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    Sally Jane Gellert

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    At the October NJ Transit board meeting, I commented on the difficulty of finding information on agenda items in order to make meaningful comments. In previous administrations, the final written agenda included a lot more detail on action items. As I looked over the packed agenda, there were items on which I had questions. I…

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  • NJT Board Members: Wake Up!

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    Webweaver

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    Portal North Bridge Is Out of Money Already! Stop the presses, NJ Transit Board members, please wake up! The $1.56 billion Portal North Bridge construction contract you approved unanimously at a special meeting last Oct. 12 is a whopping $340 million (28%) over the $1.22 billion contract cost in the PNB Project capital budget! The…

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