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Sen. Lautenberg, Amtrak tout NY-NJ tunnel reopening
New Jersey Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D) is praising Amtrak for reopening a rail tunnel that connects his state and New York City.
Lautenberg, who is a member of the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee, said the national passenger rail service has reopened its "north tube," which carries Amtrak and New Jersey Transit trains into New York City under the Hudson River.
The tunnel had been closed since sustaining damage during Superstorm Sandy.
Lautenberg said it was "good news" the tunnel has been reopened, but he said there was still work to do in the Sandy recovery effort.
“It’s good news for New Jersey that the tunnel is reopening, but damage remains and we won’t stop working until full service is restored for rail passengers,” Lautenberg said in a statement released by his office.
"Thousands of workers spent extra hours commuting, highways were further choked with more car traffic and many businesses were hurt," he said. "We must learn from this lesson and work even harder to strengthen and expand our rail infrastructure so that we are prepared the next time.”
Rail service in New Jersey and New York was crippled by flood damage from Sandy. New Jersey Transit and Port Authority Trans-Hudson (PATH) suspended service for most of the week following Sandy, and Amtrak also limited rail service in the state.
Amtrak CEO Joe Boardman said in a statement that the reopening of its tunnel between New York and New Jersey "reflects the tireless efforts of both Amtrak and New Jersey Transit to restore this vitally important transportation link into and out Penn Station."
