Gov. Christie: Corzine To Blame For Some NJ Transit Woes [AUDIO]

As prices at the pump continue to climb, a growing number of Jersey commuters are opting for mass transit - but many buses and trains are already jam-packed and fares are no bargain.

Governor Chris Christie says former Governor Jon Corzine has to shoulder some of the blame for that.

He says, "Prices have gone up because Governor Corzine didn't raise fares appropriately during his term to cover costs and he used federal stimulus money to cover problems at the fare box, rather than using federal stimulus money  in the way it should have been used- which was to improve and expand the system."

Christie adds, "Instead he decided to take the political approach, and to use all that federal stimulus money just to subsidize fares. And then as with tolls and other things, he left me to clean up the mess…in fairness to Governor Corzine, I guess he thought he was going to be here to clean up the mess - but he's not!"

The Governor also says he's glad he rejected a democratic plan to fund the Transportation Trust Fund, which pays for all major transportation projects in the state.

"Imagine if I had gone with the Wisniewski-Cryan approach to raising gas taxes," says Christie, "gas prices would be significantly higher than they already are today for the people of New Jersey…I think people of New Jersey need to take note of that - I'm anti-tax increase because I'm pro economic recovery."

He also points out, "I can't control gas prices anymore than anybody else, but what I can control is how much the state taxes a gallon of gasoline,  and it's not going up while I'm governor."