2009 predictions

[northjerseybuff]

Anyone care to take a stab at what NJT will do in the coming year..again..lets keep it real and not a wish list of things we know won't happen. Here is my list.
1. THE tunnel begins...shovels in the ground in early 09
2. Northern branch chugs along..with some major news..I think they will pick electric and finalize plans to Tenafly
3. Cutoff-FONSI approved to Blairstown and/or ES...No other news until construction begins in 2010-summer/fall
4. MOM----yawn..nothing new..continue bickering on which route to take
5. I-78 study concluded in Dec of 08-so some news on P-burg service--or hampton service may surface
6. Cross county line in Bergen county begins construction-with state funds---they are quietly close to getting this going....
7. ACES begins in February
8. Construction of the HBLR continues to 8th ave in Bayonne
I tried to keep it as realistic as possible..did I forget any?
Merry Christmas everyone

[ns3010]

I think you hae most of them but here's a couple.

1. ALP-64As will start arriving towards the end of the year.
2. More multilevels will be ordered and will show up on more lines
3. Sadly, NJT may begin retiring GP40PH-2s (Ex- CNJ units)

[Chessie GM50]

1. ALP-64As will start arriving towards the end of the year.

I didn't know NJT ordered anything w/ 6 axels!


Well anyway, what I think will happen:

1. The tunnel will break ground sometime mid-spring.
2. MOM will not be listened to.
3. NJT will not do anything to help out the WORMS
4. ACES will start February, will end April, due to a lack-o-interest
5. NJT gets more ML's
6. when the economy gets back on track, gas will rise, causing another boost in Public-Transit ridership.
7. The conspiracy to eradicate the Dinky, and BRT it resumes, with Princeton University Chopping the line back to Faculty Road.
8. We'll be sitting eating frosted donuts typing what we think will happen in 2010.

Happy whatever holiday you celebrate (if any). Weather it be because of your religion, or just for the hell of it!

[Kaback9]

ACES,ARC begins and some ALP46As might show up. Other than that all else remains stagnant.

[njt5140]

RVL service will get cut on weekends to the point where there's one train every five hours like the County before Secaucus opened.

Still no weekend service on the Boonton Line.

The ACES train will be deemed a failure by the time spring rolls around.

[ns3010]

I didn't know NJT ordered anything w/ 6 axels!

Whoops! You're right. I meant the ALP-46A

[Kaback9]

I forgot to add Happy Holidays to all!

[danny700]

Here's some predictions for 2009 that I can see happening.

1. THE tunnel construction finally gets underway, likely in the 1st quarter of the year, but no later than Easter.
2. We'll hear some news on West Trenton and where that's going.
3. MOM has maybe the best opportunity in years to finally settle on a route, likely the Monmouth Junction route.
4. ACES is going to be a success and may accelerate the push to get MOM finalized.
5. RVL expansion to Easton, PA talks will start to heat up. There's an outside shot that something big will happen with regards to that.
6. Construction of the HBLR continues to 8th ave in Bayonne and could be done by the end of 2009.

Merry Christmas everyone and Season's Greetings to one and all.

[PullmanCo]

• As for "THE Tunnel", this is the kind of arrogant mindset out of the ARC people:

  NJ TRANSIT has invested over $20 billion to transform our state's passenger rail system from an unconnected, irrational, irrelevant and underutilized resource into one of our region's most important and powerful economic engines. Unfortunately, today's rail system, which includes century–old infrastructure, is reaching its limits without additional expansion.

  For $20 billion, we sure didn't get as much as this bit of hyperbole claims (that's good for maybe 1,000 miles of new track, plus full electrification, as well as high platforms at all stations, and to top it all off, a whole new station in Manhattan to completely replace Hoboken). For half that amount, they aren't going to build anything that would really help. (They sure show a profound ignorance of the past.)
  
  I say that this project will encounter some setbacks. Again.

• West Trenton? No, nothing on the radar for that. CSX isn't going to budge on the flyover between the CNJ and the RDG. The only way you'll get a train to West Trenton is to run it through Clark and South Plainfield on the Lehigh Line, but what's the chances of that?

• ACES will go the way of its Amtrak predecessor. Maybe sooner, maybe later; this is dependent on the will of the casinos, remember, more so than the Amtrak service.

• RVL will stay where it is; High Bridge.

• MOM? Is that even on the radar?

• HBLR to 8th Street Bayonne is already in the works, so that will get built. For way more than it's worth. The battle for the Northern Branch will continue without any progress either way.

• Cutoff remains cut off. Barring a miracle at Amtrak, that is, because due to the interstate nature, this ought to be under Amtrak's auspices anyhow.

[railfanspencer]

prob many more job cuts. they have been happening on like almsot everytime they change the timetables on the M&E

[RearOfSignal]

Regularly scheduled sideswipes.

[R36 Combine Coach]

All Comet Is fully retired-almost six years behind schedule and over 38 years in service.

[thebigc]

I didn't know NJT ordered anything w/ 6 axels!

Whoops! You're right. I meant the ALP-46A

Yes, why would we want six axle electrics that might actually be able to put some power and tractive effort to the rail? After all, what did the PRR, Virginian, and NH know? So we'll have the latest iteration of the ALP with a quintillion HP and weighing a little more than a MultiLevel. Like trying to plow a field with a top fuel dragster.

[Hawaiitiki]

A few add-on predictions,
-mass parking at SEC begins
-maybe a few bilevel sets for rushhours on the Hoboken Division
-MOM goes nowhere again
-Meadowlands Station Completed
-West Trenton nowhere too
-Easton/Pburg goes further than MOM or West Trenton but still almost no progress except talk
-Casinos market ACES well to their patrons and it becomes a silent sucess

Merry X-Mas NJ

[Tom V]

Shovels in the ground on "THE Tunnel", 34th street station reconsidered in favor of expansion of NY Penn to the South?..