Speaking of ballast, NJT has parked a few cars full of ballast stone west of Secaucus. I am guessing that a few spots will be getting stones added under the tracks and there are spots that really need it. The difference between the amount and the cleanliness of the ballast Amtrak has on the Northeast Corridor and NJT has on its own lines is like the difference between night and day. While some of it might be justifiable due to the lower speeds, most of it is just lack of maintenance.
ryanov wrote:The people of NJ constantly say that they want lower taxes, so it does appear that this underfunding is exactly what people are voting for.
The sad part is that while NJT is still going backwards, as opposed to New York which while also plagued by problems is moving forward. They are just about to complete the double track to Ronkonkoma, preliminary work has started on the third Main track, ESA is happening in spite of the cost overruns and Metro-North's New Heaven line access to Penn will eventually come regardless of whether Cuomo is or is not around. Why should young professionals move to NJ when commuting from Long Island or Westchester is only going to get better? NJ is slowly becoming part of the fly-over/drive-through country and while it is not all due to transit, transit is an important factor for that.