Will ‘Short-Term’ Fixes Help Train Riders In Essex County?

ESSEX COUNTY, NJ — Governor Phil Murphy wants to help make the commute go smoother at NJ Transit's train stations. But will his plan to address “rail car shortages and overcrowded conditions” at the agency have any effect for riders who board in Essex County?

On Thursday, Murphy and Acting Department of Transportation Commissioner Diane Gutierrez-Scaccetti announced that state officials are working on short-term plans to alleviate the daily commuting crunch that is frustrating many Garden State train riders.

“We understand the increased frustrations rail commuters have been feeling the past several weeks and this plan will start providing them with some relief in the short term,” Gutierrez-Scaccetti said Thursday.

Part of the issue, according to Murphy’s office, is that NJ Transit has experienced shortages of rail equipment due to a number of issues including the availability of long-lead and custom manufactured replacement parts, and the ongoing installation of Positive Train Control (PTC). This has resulted in trains operating with fewer cars than usual with commuters experiencing overcrowded conditions.

Here are some of the short-term fixes that state officials are hoping will help make the commute smoother at all of NJ Transit’s stations:

• Twenty cars awaiting PTC equipment will be returned to revenue service as passenger cars only (not as engine control cab cars) to provide additional seating capacity. Five cars have returned to service as of Monday, 2/5/18, with the remaining fifteen cars returning within the coming weeks.
• NJ TRANSIT is finalizing an agreement to lease rail cars from regional transit providers to immediately reduce equipment shortages.
• Regular rolling stock inspections by agency maintenance crews will be accelerated by outsourcing repair work to be performed by the vendor. Inspection scheduling is under review to maximize the available fleet for daily service.
• NJ TRANSIT is meeting with parts suppliers to explore incentives and other options to reduce ordering lead times, while NJ TRANSIT will also increase its inventory of known long-lead parts, such as rail car couplers. New processes will be pursued to ensure parts are delivered before they are needed to avoid rail cars being taken out of revenue service and not being able to meet scheduled service.
• Hiring will be accelerated, pre-employment tests will be held more frequently, and candidate pool sizes will be increased for electricians and other skilled maintenance and operations employees, who are critical to railyard logistics and equipment maintenance. Human Resources recently held a successful “speed-hiring” event for rail electricians on Saturday, 2/3/18 at Bergen Community College. The event attracted approximately 400 applicants – 232 were immediately tested for the positions of Electrician/Lineman, Signal Maintainers and Communications Trainees. Tests will be scored quickly with personal interviews scheduled and offers extended within the coming days.
• NJ TRANSIT will retain outside professional services to assist Rail Operations in evaluating internal processes to monitor and manage equipment levels needed for service.

LOOKING LONG-TERM

In January, Murphy ordered a “full-scale audit” of the beleaguered transit agency, seeking to find long-term solutions to fix what he called “a beleaguered mass transit agency.”

• See related article: Gov. Phil Murphy Orders 'Full-Scale Audit' Of New Jersey Transit

Murphy said that the order – which will force an audit of NJ Transit's finances, leadership structure, hiring process and customer service – is "the first step at rebuilding customer trust in the system that carries hundreds of thousands of New Jerseyans to and from work every day."

Murphy's executive order will also examine the agency's relationship with Amtrak and its implementation of Positive Train Control, a system designed to prevent collisions and derailments by automatically stopping trains before certain accidents can occur.

• See related article: 1 Year After Hoboken Train Crash (How Has NJ Transit Improved Safety?)

• See related article: $13B Gateway Tunnel In Jeopardy; Feds Trash Obama-Era Deal

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