32nd Legislative District Assembly candidates Katie Brennan and Hoboken mayor Ravi Bhalla are demanding accountability from the PATH for recent breakdowns and last-minute service cuts.
By John Heinis/Hudson County View
“What happened this week is completely unacceptable,” Brennan began in a statement.
“Commuters were trapped underground with no power and forced to walk on tracks, and to add insult to injury, the Port Authority also announced more service cuts with barely a week’s notice and without any input from people who actually use the PATH. The system is broken and commuters deserve immediate answers.”
Tuesday’s PATH train breakdown left passengers stranded in a tunnel for over 45 minutes and forced them to walk on tracks to safety.
The incident, combined with the Port Authority’s last-minute announcement of yet another weekend service reduction, highlights the chronic dysfunction plaguing the transit system that thousands of Jersey City and Hoboken residents depend on, the candidates said.
“The residents of Hudson County deserve safe and reliable transit, not a system that treats PATH riders like an afterthought,” Bhalla added.
“There needs to be accountability, plain and simple. I’m calling on the Port Authority to hold a public hearing with riders and give an explanation for the constant breakdowns and service cuts. Enough is enough.”
The duo is asking the Port Authority to provide a full public explanation of this week’s breakdown, including what safety protocols failed and how the agency will prevent similar incidents
They are also seeking an immediate public comment period and hold a public hearing allowing commuters to weigh in on the latest weekend service reductions before they take effect.
Additionally, they want the Port Authority to honor their own commitment to five-months’ advance notice for all future service changes, with mandatory public hearings for major alterations, as well as release detailed data on service reliability, delays, and safety incidents affecting Hudson County commuters.
Furthermore, Bhalla and Brennan are committed to fight to fully fund NJ Transit, pressuring the next governor to appoint Port Authority board members who use the PATH and will therefore be advocates, identify new state funding, and more, if elected.
“The Port Authority and NJ Transit work for us, not the other way around. It’s time they started acting like it,” Brennan declared.
“The status quo isn’t working for commuters. Hudson County deserves representatives who will treat this like the crisis it is,” Bhalla asserted.
The candidates plan to be at the PATH station Monday morning during rush hour to hear directly from frustrated commuters and continue building pressure for immediate reforms.
