I rather see a plan that continues service to GCT , Penn station is ok. The Station can't be expanded , thats a wasteful plan. Its too far below street level......it needs to be redrawn or merged with the Amtrak plan.^^
I agree with you that the plan as had been proposed had its flaws (mainly that the new station wouldn't have platforms to allow through-running or connect to the existing NEC). However, it is only meant as a terminus of the commuter lines anyway and I would much, much rather see it built in accordance with the plan than see it shelved for no good reason.
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/12/opinion/12brooks.html?_r=1&src=me&ref=generalNew Jersey can’t afford to build its tunnel, but benefits packages for the state’s employees are 41 percent more expensive than those offered by the average Fortune 500 company. These benefits costs are rising by 16 percent a year. New York City has to strain to finance its schools but must support 10,000 former cops who have retired before age 50.
California can’t afford new water projects, but state cops often receive 90 percent of their salaries when they retire at 50. The average corrections officer there makes $70,000 a year in base salary and $100,000 with overtime (California spends more on its prison system than on its schools).
States across the nation will be paralyzed for the rest of our lives because they face unfunded pension obligations that, if counted accurately, amount to $2 trillion — or $87,000 per plan participant.
All in all, governments can’t promote future prosperity because they are strangling on their own self-indulgence.
No, so we can complete our commuter rail project from El Paso to the Colorado state line. :yes:So now New Jersey will have to give back $3bln to the feds, so they could build more bridges in Alaska right?
So you folks, in the same breath, lambast Christie yet complain about the very problems he, at great political expense, has been trying to fix?From a NY Times op-ed titled "Paralysis of the State"...
Its technically impossible to do. What you are talking about is the PSC plan, which had an engineering study done and it was determined that it was impossible/VERY expensive to do. I guarantee it will not be done for at least the next 100 years, or probably never.I rather see a plan that continues service to GCT , Penn station is ok. The Station can't be expanded , thats a wasteful plan. Its too far below street level......it needs to be redrawn or merged with the Amtrak plan.
Just don't vote for Paladino. Give us that much?I wish someday New York could have a governor like Christie. We need him even more than New Jersey does.
Unlikely though. The special interests and public sector unions are simply too strong here.
Confused much? It was an op-ed about the runaway entitlements of state employees. Not a "lambast" of Christie. Relates to other states as well and the problem with unfunded pension obligations draining funds for infrastructure.So you folks, in the same breath, lambast Christie yet complain about the very problems he, at great political expense, has been trying to fix?
In that case PM me.Paladino can't do a thing to change an entrenched system that was brought upon by all the Shelly Silvers in Albany since the 1960s. All he can do is make NYS an even BIGGER LAUGHINGSTOCK than it already is. Until the political split between Upstate and Downstate resolves, everyone will be pulling against each other and those 'three guys in a room' will continue raising your taxes and distorting the economy. Political divides in NYS have historically led to those backroom deals and Paladino is the most divisive character yet!"Just don't vote for Paladino. Give us that much? "
Why shouldn't I vote for Paladino if the alternative is in the pocket of the state unions and hospitals who will keep bleeding the dry and will probably force me to move elsewhere in search of a job?
Of course, if you are offering to pay my NYS taxes for me I'll reconsider
No, I'm talking about the article, I'm talking about the people who say "[Christie is] a fat ass" and yet complain about the entitlements of NJ state workers, when that's the very thing he's trying to control!Confused much? It was an op-ed about the runaway entitlements of state employees. Not a "lambast" of Christie. Relates to other states as well and the problem with unfunded pension obligations draining funds for infrastructure.
Senators Rally For Trans-Hudson Express Tunnel
Governor Chris Christie has until this Friday to review and decide on several options to save the plan for the new Trans-Hudson Express Tunnel from New Jersey to Penn Station, and New Jersey senators are taking to the streets to put pressure on Christie to approve the project once again. Democratic Senators Frank Lautenberg and Robert Menendez will rally with union workers at the tunnel's construction site in North Bergen, and previously spoke of the benefits of the new rail. He said in a statement:
The ARC Tunnel will not only allow more New Jersey residents to work in New York, but it will significantly cut the amount of time it now takes to get to Manhattan. Make no mistake: with the ARC Tunnel, commutes will be shorter, but without this tunnel, commutes will become intolerably long. We are already at near capacity with the current 100 year-old tunnel, and demand for rail service in New Jersey to midtown Manhattan is expected to double over the next two decades.
The new tunnel would double rail capacity between New Jersey and New York, create an estimated 6,000 construction jobs, and would relieve the flow of about 22,000 cars between the states. However, Christie said the $8.7 billion price tag ($2.7 billion of which would be paid by New Jersey) was too much for the state right now. And it looks like all the rallies won't change his mind. He said yesterday that unless the federal government chipped in for New Jersey's share, he's fine with walking away from the project. "I don't want to hear about the jobs it will create. If I don't have the money for the payroll, it will not create the jobs," Christie said. "This is not a difficult decision for me....I can't write the check if there is no money in the account." Looks like we'll have to find hope for a faster trip back from the Meadowlands elsewhere.
