TRENTON, N.J. (AP) – Lawmakers from the New York and New Jersey region and beyond want the federal government step in to help address safety concerns at New Jersey Transit in the wake of last month’s deadly train crash in Hoboken.
New Jersey’s congressional delegation sent a letter Friday to U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx asking the government to fulfill the transit agency’s $10 million request to help it install the GPS-based positive train control system. The transit agency said in a filing in June that it hasn’t made any additional progress on installing the system while approaching a December 2018 deadline.
Foxx said at a news conference in New York that he wasn’t ready to commit to the $10 million, but that the government believes very strongly in positive train control.
“We think it is a lifesaver,” Foxx said. “But we have a process that we have to go through. I can’t make that commitment right this second.”
The crash and other safety concerns – including an Associated Press analysis this week showing NJ Transit had more accidents than any other commuter railroad in the country in the past five years – has raised criticism of the transit agency. State lawmakers in New Jersey are preparing to launch an investigation into safety and financial issues.