Lackawanna Cutoff Passenger Service Restoration

What is the status of the track that they already put down a couple years ago? Is anything further been accomplished since then?? I had understood it was stopped because some sierra types wanted to protect some frog or something!

I remember when I thought the first train to Andover would run in December of 2012, and then there were storms.

It would be nice to have a factual by the numbers update on this project.

Update: This project is hereby stalled.

UPDATE --- UPDATE
THE NEW JERSEY HERALD , today, has an article on the Cutoff. It is like they have changed the rules on streams from 150 ft. to 300 ft.,
so here we go with all the hearings and such.

mtuandrew wrote:

jtaeffner wrote:

Tommy Meehan wrote:

mtuandrew wrote: Any of us could lay rail, with more or less mechanical assistance.

Really?

ha! i've seen guys show up for there first day of work in track and we never see 'em again after they clock out.

I said could, not would I also didn't say how well it would get done

Ahhh just like the early days of rail travel!

But in all seriousness NJT trying to back out now looks rather foolish at this point. If it's the post-build maintenance costs that they're freaking out about, can't they just make someone else who REALLY wants Scranton rail service to pony up the extra costs? NJT, from what i see, doesn't have any real motive other than to simply carry out whatever's directed at them. Like what was mentioned about Montclair wanting weekend service. They won't want to bend, but they will if the voice is loud and clear enough (which from what i gather doesn't seem to be the case here).

ladder2 wrote:What is the status of the track that they already put down a couple years ago?

The first half mile or so is being used to store retired ALP44's and Arrows.

ladder2 wrote:Is anything further been accomplished since then??

In terms of tangible progress, no.

In just 9 short months, this thread will be 10 years old.

nyswfan wrote:In just 9 short months, this thread will be 10 years old.

That just blew my mind.

From the TheAlternativepress.com


"During his comments, Vohden, said the Transportation Planning Authority approved an amendment to the Transportation Infrastructure Plan to fund the lining of the Roseville Tunnel on the Lackawanna Cutoff.

Concerns about the Byram Township tunnel, one of the longest on the century-old cutoff, were holding up approval of reopening the rail line.

The TPA will apply for permits for the new passenger station to be built in Andover, Vohden said. The site of the station will be slightly different from that of the original plans and construction cannot begin until November because of the presence of the endangered Indiana bat in the area."

This November????? or 2030??? 2135????? 358787?????

I'm voting for November 358787

WHAT THE!?! A presence of a damn bat...a mere presence NOT A FREAKIN LIVING AREA! As this BS goes on......and on....and.....on the Europeans and Chinese are freaking laughing their asses off at this sorry excuse of a nation right now as we have one red tape after another after another and after another while the boys from the Far East and West are running highspeed around us since the damn 70s/80s yet we can't get back regular commuter rail service to Scranton due to the car lobby loving politicians, a back stabbing Sierra Club who is supposed to be on our/railroad side and not acting like a paid lawyer of the highway lobby. Time and time again it's been proven that the railroads are more fuel efficient and can beat the car up and down Rts 80 and 46 at a decent speed hauling more people then a Martz/Greyhound Bus. 13 years past the 21st Century and we still can't pull it off. The hard working men of the early 1900s era Lackawanna and even the post merger EL crews who worked their butts off to maintain the ROW for the likes of the Lake Cities Phoebe Snow and the many freights are spinning in their graves!!!

Um, bats are a vital insect control mechanism, and if you think the bugs around here are bad now... if bats go away you can multiply the number by about 6 or 7. Might not seem like much but it can throw entire regions food chain out of balance creating lots of instability and more disease and tertiary issues like pollenizer decline which leads to decline & change in plant species distribution which then affects other things.

Everything is linked.

They could be relocated if needed, been done before.

At this rate, we might not see service to Andover before the 22nd century.

morris&essex4ever wrote:At this rate, we might not see service to Andover before the 22nd century.

http://youtu.be/PyZ42Csl4Xw" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

"WHAT THE!?! A presence of a damn bat..."
As much as I like commuting by train, I agree we can't let this project kill off any species. One species is killed or driven off, and the dominos start to fall and we have an environmental crisis. The land and its animals must be preserved or scrap this project.