Commuter misery: Surprise results of NJ Transit investigation

😡 NJ Transit commuters endure the 'Summer of Hell'

😡 Riders and government officials demand answers to poor performance

😳 A new study looks into the causes and the results will surprise you

NJ Transit may be the most maligned government agency in New Jersey these days, and with good reason.

Commuters who depend on NJ Transit to get them to work face a seemingly endless stream of delays, cancellations and breakdowns.

This summer has seen the worst month of performance for NJ Transit and left agency officials scrambling for answers.

"NJ TRANSIT management continues to undertake daily reviews of all NJ TRANSIT delays of six minutes or more and meets with Amtrak at least twice per week to review joint operations and advance potential solutions," the report underscored.

Amtrak owns the rails on the Northeast Corridor, the nation's busiest stretch of rail. They have suggested NJ Transit trains were having issues connecting to overhead lines that power the trains. NJ Transit equipment is failing, they said, while Amtrak equipment is not.

It seemed both plausible and logical.

Amtrak and NJ Transit commissioned a study to see if that really is the problem and where other issues might also be contributing to the ongoing commuter nightmare.

Preliminary results of that study have been released, and it will likely do nothing to soothe infuriated riders.

Did they find the cause of New Jersey Transit train delays and failures?

Bottom line: No.

Basically, the conclusion is: We don't know what is causing all the problems.

Some has speculated the failures were somehow connected to excessive heat this summer, but there was no evidence to support that theory.

A summary of the report detailed the miles of tracks, overhead wires, electric substations and equipment that has been inspected and is continuing to be inspected.

One section detailed the evaluations of equipment that connects the train (via what's called a pantograph) to the overhead wires (called a catenary system).

"Our joint review did not identify any systemic failures with Amtrak or NJ TRANSIT pantographs," the report states.

They say they will keep looking.

The report then details other steps they are taking to try and prevent pantograph and catenary failures. They include:

✔ Amtrak identified numerous short-term projects to improve its catenary system without impacting service. These include immediate structural repairs and redesigning catenary components to minimize issues on adjacent tracks.
✔ Amtrak and NJ TRANSIT are evaluating methods to expand overnight work windows using service adjustments to accelerate infrastructure renewal and repairs.
✔ Amtrak and NJ TRANSIT are also jointly enhancing inspections of NJ TRANSIT infrastructure at interchange locations.
✔ NJ TRANSIT is installing a fiberglass protector on its pantographs.
✔ NJ TRANSIT is also evaluating whether to modify its pantographs to reduce the potential for damage from catenary on Amtrak territory

No short-term fixes

With no obvious cause to the problems being endured by commuters, it also appears there will be no easy short-term fix.

Major capital improvements and new equipment are coming, but they will be costly and will be phased in over a period of years, not months or weeks.

Gov. Murphy has vowed to get to the bottom of rider woes, but this report underscores how complicated that may be and how difficult it may be to remedy.

That it little consolation to riders who were just hit with a 15% percent fare hike and the reality that fares will go up every year without a guarantee of improvement.

It is also a further blow to New Jersey businesses who were also hit with a billion-dollar tax hike to fund a transit system many of their workers don't even use.

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