Community Corner

A One-Seat Ride to NYC Will Alleviate Stress, Council Candidate Says

'The time, energy and stress that is generated by the twice-daily ritual of changing trains at Newark is staggering,' Tom Kranz says.

Written by Tom Kranz, Candidate for Fanwood Borough Council.

The recent news that NJ Transit's Raritan Valley Rail line riders will be getting limited direct-to-NYC trains, the so-called one-seat ride, is like tossing crumbs to a starving man.  This “pilot program” wouldn't start until next spring and would only be for non-peak trains. There are no plans to provide even one such express train during the week in the morning or evening rush hours, the periods when this service is needed most.

As someone who commuted by train from Fanwood to NYC for 15 years, I can tell you the amount of time, energy and stress that is generated by the twice-daily ritual of changing trains at Newark is staggering-- the mad dash up the stairs from Track 5, across the terminal floor, then down the stairs to Track 1, in hopes of making a connection to New York. Sometimes you make it, sometimes you don't. The trek home is the same-- train riders treated like cattle. 

Find out what's happening in Scotch Plains-Fanwoodwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

I understand that the single, two-track rail tunnel under the Hudson River has capacity limits, a situation that was locked in place when Governor Christie pulled the plug on the new rail tunnel project three years ago. I understand that it means NJ Transit will have to make some hard decisions to make room for Raritan Valley riders, who now account for almost 10% of NJ Transit rail customers, many of whom moved to the towns along the line specifically for the benefit of the NY trains.

I urge NJ Transit to stop dangling a “pilot program” in front of Raritan Valley riders and make the decisions necessary to get peak commuters the single seat ride they deserve. In doing so, do they really need a “pilot program” ? I’m sure NJ Transit knows how to bring a train all the way into NYC by now.

Find out what's happening in Scotch Plains-Fanwoodwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Tom Kranz

Candidate for Fanwood Borough Council


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here