New Jersey Transit disruptions caused by a piece of metal that pierced the roof of a train underscore the need for major capital improvements in the Hudson River tunnels, according to a state lawmaker.
Senate Minority Leader Tom Kean, R-Westfield, said Monday that Saturday’s incident that led to hours of weekend delays must be investigated to determine the specific point of failure and assure future passenger safety. A NJ Transit train was punctured by a pole and struck by falling wires at 11:32 p.m. Friday and then a second train struck a metal object inside the tunnel.
“The poor state of the Hudson tunnels and our rail infrastructure in general is a tragedy waiting to happen,” said Kean, who as a member of the Senate Legislative Oversight Committee has pushed NJ Transit to tackle maintenance and staffing shortfalls. “We need to know if this was a failure of equipment on the New Jersey Transit train or of the infrastructure of the tunnel which is operated by Amtrak.”
Gov. Phil Murphy mandated
“Fortunately, no one was injured and we remain in close contact with Amtrak as part of the ongoing investigation to determine the exact cause of the incident,” NJ Transit Executive Director Kevin Corbett said in a statement.
Kean stressed the need for immediate tunnel infrastructure repairs while also noting the federal government must understand the importance of replacing century-old tubes to complete the long-stalled Gateway project. New Jersey and New York have
“We’re at the point that a single stalled train can impact the entire system and disrupt the lives of hundreds of thousands of people,” Kean said. “The federal government must recognize the national importance of building new tunnels and step up with the funding that’s needed to move the Gateway Project along.”
