And where would the money come from to support a glorified suburban service beyond the borders of New Jersey. New York would not be an issue since Metro-North already covers existing lines into New York but Pennsylvania would be a problem.
The lack of population in Sussex County is incidental to the ultimate shape of this project. One has only to drive US 46 or I80 on a weekday morning coming into the New York City area to know how horendously busy these roads now are and how helpful revived passenger rail could be!
And far better if the project went (as originally intended) to Scranton and Binghamton. Below is a link to photos I took of the most intact/most in-use portion of the DL&W's super mountain mainline, the segment between Scranton and Binghamton just purchased by NS, plus a few bonus shots on the NS owned former Erie mainline at Susquehana, PA (and the Starucca Viaduct) on September 13. It was the 100th birthday of the awesome Nicholson and Martin's Creek Viaducts, the longest reinforced concrete arched railway viaducts in the world. This is the world-class heritage which might be used again.
http://s1383.photobucket.com/user/Carl_Fowler/library/Lackawanna%20Pocono%20Mainline?sort=3&page=1
MidlandMike I would like a definite answer myself, however, I hink journalist already wrote this one off to lack of priority by the NJ adminestration on rail passenger service. Gov Christy cancelled the new Hudson River rail tunnels needed to supplement and back up the existing 100 year old tunnels, and used the federal money for highways. Why would they want to revive a passenger service gone over 40 years, and why would the feds give them any more money?
I would like a definite answer myself, however, I hink journalist already wrote this one off to lack of priority by the NJ adminestration on rail passenger service. Gov Christy cancelled the new Hudson River rail tunnels needed to supplement and back up the existing 100 year old tunnels, and used the federal money for highways. Why would they want to revive a passenger service gone over 40 years, and why would the feds give them any more money?
Likely. Also, I think the population in that entire county (Sussex) is only about 150,000, many of whom would not be commuters. I believe the line will be opened to Andover next year. However west of there, the population is pretty sparse until Scranton, PA.
C&NW, CA&E, MILW, CGW and IC fan
NorthWest Yep, the current delay is NIMBYs using endangered bats to delay the project. I think before that it was wetlands somewhere...never seems to end.
Yep, the current delay is NIMBYs using endangered bats to delay the project. I think before that it was wetlands somewhere...never seems to end.
After the bats it will be the belfry they live in.
Never too old to have a happy childhood!
American rail journalism sometimes lacks the "Investigative Journalism" bite that is essential in British (and English language continental) rail publications. Certain stories go either largely unreported or just seem to disappear for months. We hear that something is planned or funded, but then it simply seems to vanish.
We as fans gossip about these issues, but I wonder if we can challenge the very good professional reporters amongst us, the Don Phillips, Fred Fraileys, Bob Johnstons, C.B. Halls, and Wes Vernons, (to note just a few really excellent and still very active journalists who know the difference between a caboose and a passenger coach, a locomotive engineer and a conductor), to update us on the behind the scenes details on some on-going stories that seem to have slipped off the screen.
I know there's stuff out there already on these stories, but as Paul Harvey used to claim where's "the rest of the story"?
I will throw up examples in a few following emails and hope other readers will add to the list. We'll start with a story out of northwestern New Jersey.
The patial restoration of the Lackawanna Cut-Off:Why does the project to restore NJTransit rail service over the dormant Lackwanna Cut-Off seem to be in limbo? We know work was done on about 7 miles of the grade west to Anodover. Rumors blame (no joke) bats in a tunnel. What gives and when can we expect some progress either to relocate the bats (if they exist) or to otherwise get this project restarted?
Real information will be much appreciated, hopefully from our "scribes", but also from any reader who really knows something.
Carl Fowler
President
Rail Travel Adventures
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