By David Cruz
Correspondent
They came in droves. Elected officials from Hudson & Essex counties. Called together by the mayor of Jersey City. Mayors, state legislators, even a United States Senator. Admittedly, all Democrats, but, still, unanimous in their opposition to a proposed elimination of overnight service on the Port Authority’s PATH service. The proposal, buried in a 100-page report on, ironically, transparency and ethics, has ballooned into the kind of no-brainer issue that attracts a tent full of elected officials in opposition.
“The global economy doesn’t stop at 1 a.m.m in the morning. There are thousands of people who work in that period of time and denying them a mass transit opportunity to get to work is, in essence, denying them a job,” said Sen. Robert Menendez.
For every party person you may see on the overnight PATH train, say officials here, there are two or three others who are going to or coming back from work. It is these working people who will be most adversely affected by curtailing PATH service, a move which the PA says will save $10 million on an $8 billion operating budget.
“They are penny-pinching on the backs of those people who work late hours, who may be in the hotel industry who have to be early, or restaurant industry who have to be in early and they have to use mass transit,” Congressman Albio Sires.
Port Authority Chairman John Degnan said is a statement that “Curtailment of PATH service would be a last resort, done only after consultation with local public officials and public hearings to be sure the Port Authority Board understands the impact.”
There is a growing theory around here that this PATH proposal is — like the fare hikes a couple of years ago — something of a red herring, that is a proposal so objectionable that makes you forget everything else in the report that proposed it.
“They threatened to raise the fares a dollar; they only raised them 50 cents and everyone’s happy, instead of saying hey what is this?” said Jersey City resident Charles Kessler.
“TCall on the Port Authority, to call on Governor Christie, to publicly state that the idea of reducing services has to be off the table. We want to hear it. We want to hear you say we take this off the table. We will not reduce PATH service for New Jersey,” said Hoboken Mayor Dawn Zimmer.
Gov. Chris Christie appointed part of the panel that proposed these changes. His office didn’t return our request for comment. But, based on his last-minute intervention on PATH fare hikes two years ago, it would surprise few observers if he came out in support of something a little less drastic and claim a victory — for commuters, of course.
