#Roads & Transport
Target:
NJ Transit
Region:
United States of America

On March of 2010, NJ Transit handed out and posted an FYI customer update of proposed changes of fares and services. In the document they mentioned that they were facing a deficit of $300 million dollars regarding their budget.

So instead of an increase proposal, they would like to cut down on services to certain areas of New Jersey that would affect a great number of commuters who depend on NJ Transit to get to and from work.

Some of the factors that they say attributed to the deficit are: 1. One-time federal payments, including stimulus funding has ended. 2. Cost for fuel, equipment parts and contractual obligations are rising. 3. The state of New Jersey cannot continue its historic level of operation subsidy. 4. NJ Transit has experienced a ridership decline of nearly 40,000 or 4.4 percent which has reduced fare revenue.

Actions NJ Transit has mentioned are being taken are 1. Reduction of their workforce by more than 200 employees. 2. Cutting executive salaries by 5 percent. 3. A hiring and wage freeze. 4. Cutting employee 401k contributions by 1/3. 5. Implementing an emergency spending freeze.

All of these things are a step in the right direction but they are also considering cutting service to certain areas based on ridership demands. This is a very drastic step since some of the proposed cuts affect services to certain areas where it is already limited. This will affect a great number of people who depend on those services to get to work in order to make a living to feed their families. One area that will be affected is the 978 and 979 bus lines that service Raritan Center. These lines bring dedicated workers from Newark and Irvington New Jersey respectively into the Raritan Center and take them back home. There are four buses daily for each area in the morning and four in the evening. Which is far less than the accessibility of other lines. The proposal to remove these lines for May 1st 2010, would greatly affect a lot of hard working, tax paying individuals.

Please sign this petition to aid in the block of the proposal to remove the 978 and 979 lines from the NJ Transit system. These lines along with others are necessary to many people who depend on them daily to get to their jobs.

It is vital that we come together and stand up against this proposal for the benefit of maintaining our jobs in some cases. Your signature is very important in this matter. There is a meeting being held at 1 Penn Plaza in Newark NJ between 5:30 PM and 8:30 PM. If you can attend, please do so and let your voice be heard.

Thank you.

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The Commuters Against the Proposed NJ Transit Fare and Services Changes petition to NJ Transit was written by ervin and is in the category Roads & Transport at GoPetition.