Lackawanna Cutoff Passenger Service Restoration

So, 6 more years to complete the first, what, 7.5 miles? If we extrapolate for the remaining 100 miles or so to Scranton, that's about 80 years so maybe by 2100?

NJ Transit in 2011 began work on the project to Andover. It will take 16 years to put the ties and rails back in place and build the Andover parking lot. Very very very slow progress.

Here is the 2011 news story when NJ Transit started construction on the 7.5 mile extension to Andover. My, it is taking 16 years to do this? That is less than a half-mile progress each year! So slooooowwww.
https://www.nj.com/news/2011/03/nj_tran ... re_ra.html

100+ years ago we would have it done in a week. Now our national competition would have it done in a couple of days.

It is bizarre, but that's the way it goes. Restoring and maintaining Roseville is not going to be easy.

Matt Johnson wrote: ↑Thu Aug 12, 2021 8:36 am So, 6 more years to complete the first, what, 7.5 miles? If we extrapolate for the remaining 100 miles or so to Scranton, that's about 80 years so maybe by 2100?

You'd think that Christie was still governor.

Roadgeek Adam wrote: ↑Thu Aug 12, 2021 11:24 pm It is bizarre, but that's the way it goes. Restoring and maintaining Roseville is not going to be easy.

But why does it take years to get the work started?

Ex-Gov Christie needed a transit project for his Republican supporters in Sussex County. This project to Andover was that project, Christie crowed about bringing commuter rail service to Sussex County. Gov Murphy, a Democrat, made the LC a super low non-priority for the past 4 years. And the completion date slipped from 2021 to 2024 to now 2027. Not a big deal since less than 100 new riders are projected to board at Andover.

#1578186 by Dcell
Fri Aug 13, 2021 1:45 pm

Is there any real reason to spend this money when it could be better spent pushing forward the Portal Bridge? 100 passengers / day vs 10s of thousands / day.

R&DB wrote: ↑Fri Aug 13, 2021 1:41 pm

#1578186 by Dcell
Fri Aug 13, 2021 1:45 pm

Is there any real reason to spend this money when it could be better spent pushing forward the Portal Bridge? 100 passengers / day vs 10s of thousands / day.

The reality is NJ Transit bends to the whims of the political party that is in charge at that point in time -- the Governor appoints the NJDOT Commissioner who is also the Chair of the NJT Board and the Gov also appoints several NJT Board members. Politic considerations drive many of NJT's project decisions. The LC is a very good example of this.

Dcell wrote: ↑Fri Aug 13, 2021 12:45 pm Ex-Gov Christie needed a transit project for his Republican supporters in Sussex County. This project to Andover was that project, Christie crowed about bringing commuter rail service to Sussex County. Gov Murphy, a Democrat, made the LC a super low non-priority for the past 4 years. And the completion date slipped from 2021 to 2024 to now 2027. Not a big deal since less than 100 new riders are projected to board at Andover.

From what I can tell, even if Christie 'favored' it, he didn't seem to want any actual work done on it. Then Murphy sat on it. As to the overall project, I suspect that it may get more riders than projected at Andover, but overall it could get a lot of cars and long distance buses off the road on I80 and I380.

photobug56 wrote: ↑Thu Aug 12, 2021 11:51 pm

Roadgeek Adam wrote: ↑Thu Aug 12, 2021 11:24 pm It is bizarre, but that's the way it goes. Restoring and maintaining Roseville is not going to be easy.

But why does it take years to get the work started?

You can thank Robert Moses for the 50,000 levels of bureaucracy for public works projects nowadays, given his interest in just bombing everything for roads.

It takes forever nowadays because of all the reports, the public hearings, the acquisition of funding. It's all just layers upon layers. Does it suck? Yes, but we have to deal with it. I'm not any more happy it will take till 2027 to get a 1 station, 7 mile extension.

Yes, sadly we all have to deal with waiting six additional years just to get 7 miles of brand new track and other infrastructural improvements prepped for rail service. Honestly they could have rebuilt the right of way to at least East Stroudsburg for NJT service by now. Even when the train service to Andover begins in 2027, it will probably be rush hour weekday service only.

njtmnrrbuff wrote:Yes, sadly we all have to deal with waiting six additional years just to get 7 miles of brand new track and other infrastructural improvements prepped for rail service. Honestly they could have rebuilt the right of way to at least East Stroudsburg for NJT service by now. Even when the train service to Andover begins in 2027, it will probably be rush hour weekday service only.

The only way NJT can afford to get to East Stroudsburg is if Amtrak follows through with their desire to run NYC to Scanton. Even that is very iffy.

I think a bit part of the problem is NJT itself being pretty iffy.