Christie defends pulling plug on tunnel project

TRUMBULL, Conn. (AP) -- Gov. Chris Christie is again defending his decision to pull the plug on a Hudson River tunnel project after Amtrak warned its existing tunnels are in desperate need of repairs.

Amtrak last week released a report showing Superstorm Sandy damage to rail tunnels used by trains linking New York with the rest of the Northeast Corridor was more extensive than originally thought. Repairs would require extended closures that could cause service nightmares for hundreds of thousands of people, they warned.

But speaking at a campaign stop in Connecticut Monday, Christie said he "totally" stands by his 2010 decision to scrap a project known as Access to the Region's Core -- or ARC -- because his state would have been on the hook for any cost overruns.

"The people of New Jersey did not want to pay $3 to $5 billion in cost overruns for a tunnel that went to the basement of Macy's," said Christie, who was in Trumball campaigning for GOP candidate Tom Foley, who is running for governor.

Christie argued the $8.7 billion project wouldn't have been close to done by now anyway -- although it would have been well underway.

"So this is just another way for liberals who want bigger spending programs to complain about a recent decision I made to save the taxpayers money," he said to applause from the crowd.

Christie went on to say that he was "absolutely" in favor of another tunnel between New Jersey and New York -- as long as the costs are shared.

"I'm ready to step up and pay New Jersey's share, as I was before," he said. "But I'm certainly not going to allow the people of New Jersey to be taken to the cleaners by New York."

Amtrak has proposed a new Gateway Tunnel project that could cost billions of dollars.

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