Lackawanna Coalition

advocating for rail passengers since 1979

  • A New NJT Headquarters?

    –

    Sally Jane Gellert

    –

    ,

    commentary Recently it was reported that NJ Transit is going to move its headquarters from its owned building on one side of Newark Penn Station to leased space on the other side of the station. We were flummoxed to hear this—generally speaking, owing one’s “home” is not only considered the American Dream, but also gives…

    Read more

  • Using SEPTA’s Senior Key Card

    –

    John Bobsin

    –

    Interstate Senior Fares? Seniors et al. can obtain a Senior Key Card valid for free riding in SEPTA within Pennsylvania. This leads to the question of just what seniors have to pay on SEPTA trains that cross the state line, to Trenton, West Trenton, and Delaware. (Side issue: once I met a Pennsylvania resident who…

    Read more

  • “Rush hour” at Bernardsville

    –

    John Bobsin

    –

    So we trekked over there to find out what was happening.  I wanted to find out whether the trains were really still terminating there (Yes), were they being parked somewhere farther west on the main line (No), or were they being sent back east to possibly delay the next train coming west (Yes). We arrived…

    Read more

  • RUN to Newark at the End of April!

    –

    David Peter Alan

    –

    The RAIL Users’ Network (RUN) will be coming to Newark on Friday, April 28, for its first “in person” conference since the COVID-19 pandemic sent RUN, the Lackawanna Coalition, and most of society into “virtual space” for the past few years. The conference itself will take place from 8:30 A.M. until 4:50 P.M. at the…

    Read more

  • Report from the Chair

    –

    Sally Jane Gellert

    –

    Budget season is in full swing in Trenton, and as April turned to May Legislative Director Vito Havrilla presented remarks at a Senate hearing. These have been posted to our website and forum. Kevin Corbett appeared at a later hearing and admitted that fare increases are on the table despite the governor’s denial. The last…

    Read more

  • NJ Transit: Truth in Advertising, Please!

    –

    Jesse Gribin

    –

    NJ Transit is lying. I don’t say this because of dishonesty in their dealings, or the fact that their IT constantly claims that trains are running and on time when they are in fact not. No, this is dishonesty in advertising. They claim, prominently—in advertising, news releases, and elsewhere—the following lie: “NJ TRANSIT is the…

    Read more

  • Budget Season Is Here

    –

    Sally Jane Gellert

    –

    Checking the state legislature’s home page as this issue goes to press, we found that the annual Senate and Assembly budget hearings have been announced; the first on March 14th, the final on April 25th. Each year the legislature spends much of this season hearing from constituents about particular budget concerns, suggestions for more, less,…

    Read more

  • Report from the Chair, March/April 2023

    –

    Sally Jane Gellert

    –

    The biggest train-related story since our last issue of the Railgram has to be the Norfolk Southern derailment in East Palestine, Ohio. We note that the problem was compounded by a slow EPA response that allowed the corporation’s request to burn off toxic chemicals—possibly necessary to avoid an uncontrolled explosion, but done in such a…

    Read more

  • Norfolk Southern Rips Up Tracks On Former Lower Greenwood Lake Line

    –

    Webweaver

    –

    After securing a $65 million deal to transfer the right-of-way of the former Greenwood Lake line to the nongovernmental organization Open Space Initiative, Norfolk-Southern (NS) railroad began to rip up tracks at the end of last year. Right now, Norfolk Southern is a household name due to the derailment and controlled burn in East Palestine,…

    Read more

  • Watches vs Transit

    –

    John Bobsin

    –

    This post started as an e-mail response to a transit e-mail list that somehow had a flurried discussion of wristwatches: German vs Russian vs American; relative quality and value, etc. We have had a lot of posts in the last few days about timepieces.  I have been struggling to figure out how the subject of…

    Read more

Recent Posts

Categories

Archives

Tags

Amtrak ARC bicycles budget bus buses Chris Christie conference Delays equipment fares From the Chair From the Railgram Gladstone history Hoboken Jim Simpson Jim Weinstein Joseph Clift LIRR Midtown Direct Montclair-Boonton Morris & Essex MTA Newark NJT board NJ Transit NJ Transit Board Northeast Corridor North Jersey Coast Line NY Penn Station Pascack Valley Line PATH Penn Station First Plan Raritan Valley RUN Safety SCDRTAC Secaucus Junction Super Bowl Superstorm Sandy transparency Transportation Trust Fund tunnels weather