Hey you; have you you ever wondered what life is like on the other side of the Hudson River? Do you long to set foot upon the shores of New Jersey, yet are afraid of taking the PATH train or, god forbid NJ Transit? Well, if that’s the case, the Mayor’s office floated an idea yesterday that would have made it easier than ever to get to New Jersey. Then today, the feds rejected that dream like Dikembe Mutombo.
They Bloomberg administration pondered aloud yesterday the possiblity of extending the 7 train all the way to Secaucus, New Jersey (home of the NBA Draft Lottery!). The 7 line is currently already being extended to 34th and 11th Ave, right next to the Javits Center, so it wouldn’t be absolutely insane to just keep digging under the Hudson until you reach Jersey.
However, today it looks like those dreams have been squashed. The plan called for using $3 billion in federal funds previously designated toward the ARC tunnel, a trans-Hudson tunnel project that was killed by New Jersey Governor Chris Christie last month. The city pondered the idea of taking that ARC money and putting it toward a 7 train extenstion, but today the feds told the Daily News they wouldn’t foot the bill.
“The $3 billion has disappeared,” Jeff Zupan, senior transportation fellow at the Regional Plan Association, told the News. “They’re not going to turn around and say, ‘okay, you have a better idea now, we’ll give you the money.’ It’s not going to happen. “
Ah well. So much for that idea. Looks like if you want to get to Jersey, your best bet is still to get a sled and some water-huskies.
Source: NY Daily News, Gothamist
