Bad enough that the states Transportation Trust Fund to fix roads and bridges is running on fumes, the Federal Transportation Fund’s in trouble too. Funding’s been extended for the holiday. Just until next Friday, giving Congress only days to cut a long term deal. The House of Representatives’ current deal cuts millions from state highway funds and $50 million from NJ Transit and contains no funding for the new Gateway train tunnel under the Hudson. I asked the Senate Mass Transit Subcommittee’s ranking Democrat, Senator Bob Menendez where the House and Senate transportation bills stand.

Williams: The Federal Transpiration Funding bill’s deadline has been extended to Dec. 4. What’s up for negotiation between the House and Senate versions of that bill?

Menendez: Well this is the large Federal Transportation bill that is so critical to New Jersey as a corridor state where mass transit is a big part of our economic vitality, cross borders. So, what the bill is about is trying to reconcile a more robust transportation bill because it’s a five year bill, but right now only has three years of funding. Which means that at the end of this three years we will be back in the same boat, and its hard to plan long term projects, like Gateway the Trans-Hudson tunnel in three years. We’re in negotiations to build it up, to have it more robustly funded and to include some provisions that the Senate passed that are important to New Jersey, like a high density state, that the House took out. That’s what our challenge is.

Williams: And what the high density state the House took out means is a loss of $50 million to NJ transit.

Menendez: Absolutely. Which NJ Transit cannot afford and NJ Transit riders cannot afford. If you take 50 million out, how do we ever get to the type of money Gateway?

Williams: That’s my question, how do we to the money for Gateway?

Menendez: Well, this is going to have to be, when I passed the last Federal Highway Bill we had provisions for projects of national or regional significance. Well, we generate about 20 percent of GDP for the entire nation out of our region. This has to be a project of national significance, and we have to get the funding necessary in that category to make sure we start our way and have a long term commitment to Gateway. The government, the federal government said they’ll match 50 percent. That’s great, but saying that and having the money to do it is two different things. I am working to try to make sure the money is there.

...Continue reading article here.