A bunch of things happened while I was in Michigan. This is to be expected. I deliberately turned my back on things at Stevens Institute of Technology/New Jersey/The World, so I could relax and take a break. (It was a nice change of pace, by the way.)
But I’m back in the real world now, so I want to pick off things relevant to my fellows here at Stevens. Let’s talk about the PATH service.
First, let’s address why this is an issue. Sometime over my vacation, the New Jersey State Government thought it would be a good idea to propose some transportation reforms (no harm there, transportation usually sucks in New Jersey, so a reform should be a good thing) but among them was the idea of cutting the PATH service between the hours of 1:00 a.m. and 5:00 a.m., and possibly the weekends, too. Many people have criticized this, and it isn’t too hard to know why. Thankfully, the proposal has been tabled, so there isn’t anything to worry about.
I see their point: the service falls beneath 1% its standard capacity during these hours. Leaving the trains running really just wastes more money for those select few who need to work nights in New York, or are partying in New York, or are homeless, or are too cheap to take a cab.
But less than 1% is still easily in the thousands. I can recall my girlfriend having to work night shifts when she worked for a geotechnical consulting company in New York City. If she didn’t have the PATH running, she would have been spending a lot more money to get back to Hoboken before 6:00 a.m. so she could sleep. So, really, getting rid of the PATH during nights: awful idea.
I heard about a similar retort from the government about some ARC tunnel project, something that would’ve created another way to get into New York via New Jersey. It was apparently shot down due to costs at the last minute, or something like that.
Let me drill something into your heads, New Jerseyans: interconnectivity is the single best thing that you have in this state. I honestly can think of nothing better that this region of New Jersey can offer; no, I don’t like the bagels, and I prefer Chicago-style pizza.
Being as cramped and crowded as New Jersey is, I am appalled at the lack of government support to add more public transport to the system. Not just because it would give my field more work, but because I have had many circumstances in the PATH system where I had to take a later train because the first one was so full. Buses are crowded, and the ferry is too expensive, but even that is packed. Light Rails? I don’t even bother because I know how stuffed it will be most of the time.
So really, get it together. In Michigan, where I hail from, I don’t have buses, trains, or subways to get me from place to place. This is why we joke that there are more cars in Michigan than people. You, here in New Jersey, can go miles without ever getting in a car, and that is pretty freaking cool.
Please, don’t ever cut the PATH service. Don’t reduce public transportation. Even if it saves money, it limits opportunity and forces people down routes they are less comfortable with.
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