South Brunswick residents will have to wait a little longer to quiz NJ Transit Executive Director Jeffrey Warsh about his plans for a Monmouth-Ocean-Middlesex rail line.
He does plan to visit the township, but no date has been set.
Meanwhile, there seems to be a lot of new developments related to the proposed Lakewood-Monmouth Junction link which local officials and many local residents abhor.
Conrail officials have indicated that because of an anticipated increase in freight traffic, passenger trains will not be able to share the existing freight train line between the north end of Jamesburg and the Northeast Corridor connection in Monmouth Junction. That means if the MOM link is ever to become a reality, a new second track will have to be built.
For those who live near the track, that creates new concerns and gives Warsh’s visit added importance.
NJ Transit spokesman Ken Miller said recently that Warsh also has to meet with Amtrack officials concerning a new, high-speed bullet train that uses the Northeast Corridor line. Warsh is also awaiting for a report on a tunnel that would allow southbound trains to switch to the Conrail line.
That sound like a pretty big menu of items that could affect the estimated $400 million MOM project: a missing track, a bullet train and a tunnel.
While it has been on different drawing boards for years, the MOM link project obviously isn’t going away, so it is important that South Brunswick residents keep up-to-date with the latest developments.
The township must continue to press Warsh to visit and to keep residents informed.