(The Center Square) – South Jersey lawmakers hope to derail plans for an 18-mile light-rail line connecting Camden and Glassboro, saying it is unnecessary.
The Glassboro-Camden Line will restore passenger rail service along an existing rail line in Gloucester and Camden counties. Proponents say it will increase mobility and improve links between established communities, jobs and regional activity centers.
Assemblywoman Bethanne McCarthy Patrick, R-Salem, suggested funding for the project should instead go toward other infrastructure projects to help relieve traffic congestion and ease commutes for residents and workers in Gloucester and Camden counties.
The proposed rail line dates to at least 1996 as part of a study to expand mass transit in the southern part of the state. A 2009 estimate pegged the cost of the line at between $1.6 and $1.8 billion, critics say.
“South Jersey doesn’t have an immediate need for a new rail line, but it could certainly benefit from repairs to routes 42 and 295 and an expanded Route 55,” McCarthy Patrick said in a statement.
“Our priorities should be on the heavily used highways and not rarely needed rails,” the assemblywoman added. “We should do what benefits everyone, not what will only serve some while disrupting the lives of residents who don’t want diesel trains running through their communities every day and night.”
The line, slated to run along an existing Conrail freight line, will include 14 new stations and connect with the PATCO Speedline and NJ Transit’s River Line. Republican lawmakers say $200 million from the South Jersey Transportation Authority will fund the line’s preliminary engineering and design.
State Sen. Edward Durr, R-Gloucester, said the proposed line in its current iteration takes a patchwork approach and will increase traffic, divide smaller towns and endanger residents’ safety.
“I do not oppose a new rail system to help commuters and residents, but the current route being put forward for the Glassboro-Camden rail line will hurt more than it will help South Jersey,” Durr said in a statement.
“This project has been in the works on and off since the 1990s, and at one point, was planned to run on the Route 55 median – which was, and still is, a sensible solution because it would not impact smaller towns,” Durr added. “The route that is being suggested now cuts directly through the heart of 12 different municipalities with little regard for traffic, parking, and noise from a diesel-electric train running every 10 minutes.”
This article was published by The Center Square and is republished here with permission. Click here to view the original.
