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Dear friends of Regional Rail:
The next meeting of the Regional Rail Working Group (RRWG) will be held on Wednesday, February 25, 2009, 6-8pm (meeting will start promptly at 6pm) Conference Room, NYPD Downtown Center 104 Washington Street (just north of Rector Street), Lower Manhattan. Discussion will continue on detailing an advocacy plan to gain additional support for opposing NJ Transit's "go it alone" plan to construct an isolated 'deep cavern" terminal station some 175 feet under 34th Street. Despite all the rhetoric from local elected officials, it is really the Obama Administration that must decide whether this project should be recast to foster interstate commerce, and only fund new ARC Hudson River tunnels that connect directly into existing tracks and platforms at Penn Station. The deep cavern plan represents a colossal failure of interstate cooperation. With the region's economy approaching near collapse it makes little sense to spend an extra $3 billion to make it harder to travel by public transit within the region. The alternative -- the direct track connection plan -- is really a positive "jobs program" that will save travelers 4 to 5 minutes of travel time per trip in each direction. It will set the stage for the second stage -- connecting Penn Station with Grand Central Terminal. Connecting the two stations provides widespread benefits for travel throughout the region. A third initiative, to press transit agencies to work together to accomplish "thru-running" at Penn Station, will also be discussed. It is not to late to make the case to the Obama Administration to turn down NJ Transit's request for Federal funding to make it harder to travel between the two states. As a constitutional scholar Obama will surely realize that it is the Federal government's responsibility to press the states to work together, not in opposite directions, to facilitate interstate commerce. Time permitting, there will be progress reports on other RRWG initiatives: 1. regional rail equipment compatibility issues 2. Upper Level Loop Alternative for LIRR East Side Access 3. Rockaway Cut-off - one-seat ride Midtown Manhattan-Aqueduct Racino-JFK Airport and Rockaway Peninsula (note, there will be a report from a subcommittee which is considering ways to restart this advocacy effort). 4. Lower Manhattan Access 5. Light Rail in the Lincoln Tunnel 6. Regional Rail Freight and Intercity rail passenger issues The purpose of the working group is to develop and advance plans for converting the region's commuter rail lines into a regional rail system, with fast, frequent service and affordable, integrated fares. The group also considers changes to rapid transit and light rail transit that are "regional" in scale. Regional Rail issues are discussed on our website: www.rrwg.org The Working Group includes: Empire State Passengers Association NJ Association of Railroad Passengers Lackawanna Coalition Five Towns Rural Transit, Inc. Committee for Better Transit Institute for Rational Urban Mobility Sane Aviation for Everyone, Inc. (SAFE) (our newest participant) Plan to attend the next meeting on Wednesday, February 25, 2009, 6-8pm Also, why not join us to celebrate Auto-Free New York's 20th Anniversary. This will occur at a joint meeting with the vision42 working group this coming Tuesday, February 17, 2009, 6-8pm at the Transportation Alternatives Office, 127 W. 26th Street, 10th Floor. To get an idea on how many people will attend either meeting please send an RSVP. Thanks. geo George Haikalis Chair, Regional Rail Working Group One Washington Square Village, Suite 5D New York, NY 10012 phone: 212-475-3394 geo@irum.org www.irum.org www.auto-free.org www.vision42.org www.rrwg.org |
