Christie Calls For 'Full Investigation' Following NJ TRANSIT Derailment At Penn Station
NJ TRANSIT says there may still be delays up to 15 minutes in and out of New York.
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NJ TRANSIT says there may still be delays up to 15 minutes in and out of New York.
In this new WCBS 880 special report series, Alex Silverman takes a closer look at the Tri-State Area's transit nightmare.
Officer Daniel Kuczynski was struck on the tracks last Monday morning. He was off-duty at the time.
Train routes from areas due west will be the most affected, with trains passing through Morris and Essex counties being diverted to Hoboken.
Penn Station commuters are hoping for an easier ride Wednesday after switch problems caused major delays and cancellations on the Long Island Rail Road and NJ TRANSIT during the Tuesday evening rush.
Riders are experiencing 10 to 15 minute delays heading eastbound out of Penn Station, and the LIRR advised customers to anticipate additional cancellations throughout the evening.
NJ TRANSIT executive director Steve Santoro told lawmakers Wednesday that redirecting trains from Morris and Essex counties to Hoboken was the best option of several considered.
Detailed plans to end the nightmare at Penn Station are yet to be released, but a look at conditions exposed a complicated challenge.
Amtrak officials say three tracks at a time will be closed so that rails, switches and other aging equipment can be replaced.
Some 29,000 commuters take the PATH from Hoboken each weekday -- in April, it turned into a cattle crawl when NJ TRANSIT lines were rerouted from Penn Station.
Leaking ceilings, switch and signal problems -- even derailments -- put passengers in danger, and prevent them from getting where they need to go.
The temporary green wall restricting access to the concourse was taken down early Sunday following repairs needed after a deadly crash in September.
Amtrak was responding Friday to a letter from New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo and New Jersey Gov. Christie calling for a private operator to take over Penn Station, where recent derailments and other problems have hampered commuters.
The governors sent a joint letter to Amtrak on Thursday night, saying the situation at Penn Station "has gone from bad to worse to intolerable."
Riding the rails for free? Conductors in New Jersey claim it's easier to pull off than you might think.
The rain didn't just cause problems for drivers - rail commuters were also facing delays on Friday night.
Amtrak says its working to "develop and refine" its plan following a meeting Monday with the two railroads. An initial proposal would disrupt rail service for 44 days this summer.
Under the proposed plan, repairs could snarl service for commuters for weeks this summer.
Rail commuters would face about six weeks of significant service disruptions this summer under a preliminary plan to make repairs at Penn Station.
Frustrated NJ TRANSIT commuters have launched a social media campaign dubbed "No Pay May." They are urging riders to try and use their April monthly passes in May as a form of protest.
Accelerated repairs at Penn Station this summer will require two or three "significant'' disruptions to service, Amtrak's CEO told New Jersey lawmakers Friday.
Amtrak President and CEO Wick Moorman detailed the plans in a conference call Thursday morning, but said he didn't know yet just how bad the potential delays may be.
The plan is in addition to ongoing Amtrak track maintenance work that NJ TRANSIT says will cause 15-minute delays to and from Penn on weekdays and 30-minute delays on weekends "until further notice,"
Delays on the NJ TRANSIT system persisted as the evening rush began at Penn Station due to the overhead wire problems.
An Amtrak signal problem caused significant congestion in the tunnel delaying trains between Newark and Penn Station on the Northeast Corridor, North Jersey Coast Line, Raritan Valley, and MidTown Direct lines, according to NJ TRANSIT.
