Fixing NJ Transit will cost a busload of cash

Gov. Phil Murphy is spelling out how $242 million dollars in proposed additional funding for NJ Transit will be used.

During a visit to the NJ Transit train station in Madison on Tuesday, he said getting NJ Transit "back on the right track and providing value again to our commuters is one of our top priorities and at the same time, one of our toughest challenges.”

Murphy said $19 million would be used to hire 114 workers.

“This means new drivers for buses, new train masters and engineers, additional training staff, skilled maintenance workers, compliance and human resources experts — in short, the people NJ Transit needs to ensure the system is properly staffed with capable, skilled employees," he said.

Murphy said $ 21 million is going to “bus and rail facility maintenance, technological software improvements and other supplies that will improve the overall reliability and overall health of the transit system.”

Another $4 million will expand bus service to New York and the Meadowlands.

Other funding detailed by his office on Wednesday:

— $120 million for replacement of nonrecurring funding.
— $28 million to correct the structural passenger revenue shortfall caused by using unrealistic annual passenger revenue assumptions.
— $4 million to enhance scheduling, provide timely media updates and communication with the public and improve service reliability.

“We’re going to demand true value from every new dollar that we are investing, and we’re going to demand results,” Murphy said.

He also said the push to fix in NJ Transit is also about “restoring pride in a dedicated workforce that has been just as impacted by bad decisions as riders have.”

Murphy also reminded everyone there will be no NJ Transit fare hike until at least June 2019 at the earliest.

You can contact reporter David Matthau at David.Matthau@townsquaremedia.com