By John Taranu and Jimmy Lee
This week, the Port Authority votes on a budget to fund a costly replacement of the Newark Airport AirTrain. But for riders, this still does not provide a direct, one-seat connection from Lower Manhattan, Jersey City or Newark to Newark Airport.
We join the thousands of riders calling for the Port Authority to connect the PATH directly to Newark Airport.
Today, the PATH ends just three miles shy of the airport at Newark Penn station. To complete their trip, riders have to take a complex three-step connection between the PATH, NJ Transit and the AirTrain. On evenings and weekends, 60-minute gaps between NJT trains and 40-minute gaps on the PATH turn what should be a quick 30-minute ride into a 90-minute ordeal.
The Port Authority had the opportunity to build a direct PATH connection to the airport from the start. Instead, the Port Authority proceeded with a two-stage program: renewing the AirTrain and then extending the PATH three miles to the AirTrain station.
Then the AirTrain replacement budget exploded by 70% to $3.5B; the Port Authority is again deferring the crucial PATH connection to undetermined future years. Riders will continue to suffer the three-step connection from today.
There is a better solution.
Extending the PATH to Newark Airport would bring millions of riders and 20,000 airport workers frequent, direct access to the airport. This project is eminently feasible; fortunately, the Port Authority and Amtrak already own all the necessary rights-of-way to construct this project.
Newark Airport has hit record travel levels and is currently in the middle of a major expansion program that has already delivered one new terminal and will continue to add capacity through work on the remaining terminals.
Our region competes globally; cities like Hong Kong and Tokyo have long had fast rail links to their urban core, while global centers like London, Paris and Madrid have spent billions in the last decade to enhance rail links to their airports. Across the U.S., cities like Miami, Atlanta, Denver, Philadelphia, Salt Lake City and Minneapolis/St. Paul have connected their airports to their downtown core – many with trains every 10 minutes or better.
By building the PATH extension, visitors and residents would have frequent, affordable and safe one-seat rides directly to Newark, Jersey City and New York (three of the top four lowest car ownership cities in the country), thereby reducing reliance on expensive taxis, rideshares and parking. The endless traffic jams at the terminals and congestion around the airport will be reduced, and our communities made safer with less traffic on local streets.
For thousands of airport workers and residents of South Newark, it would provide a much more affordable and reliable commute. The Port Authority will achieve its goals of improved passenger experience and enhanced access for underserved communities, and its climate goals by diverting auto trips with transit. An additional station in southern Newark would multiply these benefits further.
The rest of the region will benefit from reduced traffic, noise and pollution. Building a one-seat ride from Newark Airport to Newark, Jersey City and Lower Manhattan would benefit our entire region – something an expensive AirTrain replacement alone does not deliver.
John Taranu and Jimmy Lee are residents of Jersey City and organizers with Hudson County Complete Streets.
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