Challenges and Frustrations of New York City Commuters with Amtrak and NJ Transit

Yeah, that’s me. Stuck on an Amtrak train this summer. Over the last 16 years, I have been a New York City commuter who has relied on Amtrak and NJ Transit. This year is the worst that I can remember. I’ve been stuck on trains for hours at a time and even been forced to stay in the city because the delay was so long that I would have needed to turn around almost as soon as I got home.

The New York Times provides a great analysis of how we got to this point. A lot of people like to blame current management but the real problem with Amtrak began years ago when our leadership from Washington to New York City failed to plan for the future. The century old tunnels that urgently need replacement should have been addressed 20 even 30 years ago. The electrical system that also dates back to the 1930s also should have been addressed decades ago. Instead, politicians kicked the can down the road and here we are with a failing Amtrak rail system that by extension also impacts NJ Transit.

And it’s not just the tunnels and wires, but also the trains. Many of the engines are decades old, according to conductors with whom I have spoken. The bathrooms are often a hot mess. I’ve been in cars where the doors don’t lock or the toilets don’t flush. Talk about gross.

As extreme heat takes hold during the summer, the delays just get worse. The old trains and infrastructure just can’t handle it. While Amtrak has been better since the June meltdown, I still get a daily reminder of potential delays.

NJ Transit is another story as those commuters endured more hell on the rails this past week. They too have endured weeks of frustration, and as my colleague NJ Burkett reported earlier this month, we are still years away from real change.

The frustration for many commuters is not just the delay or the cancelation but the lack of contingency plans when something goes haywire. A few weeks back, a train from Philadelphia to Boston got stuck south of Trenton at 1:00 a.m. Those folks sat on that train until the next one came along – my morning train nearly 6 hours later. That is just wrong but there’s no contingency plan to get stuck commuters off a train and on another form of transportation – unless they are stuck at a station. Then maybe there are alternatives.

The immediate future likely holds more delays, cancelations, and frustrations, and it is clear Amtrak is a long way from getting to where we need it to be. Let’s just hope nothing else stands in the way of building that newer tunnel and finishing the replacement for the portal bridge, or the wait for a better tomorrow will only get longer.