NJ Politics Digest: Murphy Promises NJ Transit Will Improve Service

The Engage, Inform, Improve program will help NJ Transit inform commuters when trains are late or cancelled.

An NJ Transit train.
An NJ Transit train. Alyana Alfaro for Obsever.

Almost a year after taking office, Gov. Phil Murphy on Wednesday unveiled a program he says will better inform commuters of problems with NJ Transit.

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Murphy was at the Trenton train station to promote a program called Engage, Inform, Improve that he says will clear up one of the biggest rider complaints about the troubled transit agency—that they never know when trains are running late or outright cancelled, according to a report in NJ.com.
Murphy also said the purchase of 113 new rail cars, 182 new buses and the expected graduation of four classes of locomotive engineers in 2019 should help alleviate problems for people who depend on the agency to get them to work.

Murphy said the improvements won’t be immediate, but said NJ Transit will now be able to send out push notifications about problems, and NJ Transit employees will be equipped with technology to better help them share information about delays and problems, the report said.

The agency will also create new positions to ensure information is disseminated to the public quickly.
Murphy and agency officials also announced that NJ Transit will meet a Dec. 31 deadline to install positive train control systems. Murphy has spent much of the past year blaming problems at the transit agency on the need to install the PTC systems and on his predecessor, former Republican Gov. Chris Christie.

Quote of the Day: “We won’t get to nirvana overnight,” — Gov. Phil Murphy, announcing improvements to service at NJ Transit.

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NJ Politics Digest: Murphy Promises NJ Transit Will Improve Service