NJ: Here’s how the next N.J. governor plans to fix your commute

From congested highways to crowded commuter trains, New Jersey’s transportation system is so high maintenance, it prompted Gov. Phil Murphy to say he would fix NJ Transit “if it kills me.”

Whether Murphy’s efforts will succeed remains to be seen. But the candidates running to replace him on Nov. 4 face keeping NJ Transit moving forward, while ensuring major roads and bridges are kept in good repair as millions of people use them daily.

Republican candidate Jack Ciattarelli, a former state Assemblyman, and Democrat candidate Mikie Sherrill, a congresswoman, answered specific questions about top transportation issues: from keeping the Gateway Tunnel project moving to Turnpike tolls and expansion and NJ Transit funding.

Gateway Tunnel

The most immediate issue is keeping the Gateway rail tunnel project under the Hudson River alive. President Donald Trump canceled already approved funding for it on Oct. 15 to retaliate against U.S. Senator Chuck Schumer for the ongoing federal government shutdown.

Sherrill reiterated her intent to sue Trump and the federal government on “day one” to “claw back critical funding for Gateway” and force them to honor a July 8, 2024 full funding agreement.

Ciattarelli “repeatedly said he supports the Gateway project,” said Chris Russell, a Ciattarelli strategist.

“He has signaled his intention to work with the Trump Administration and our congressional delegation to ensure the necessary funding stays in place,” Russell said.

Sherrill accused him of not doing enough or detailing talks he’s had with Trump, while Ciattarelli’s campaign said she is “waving the white flag by suing the White House.”

NJ Transit

The next governor will face a big decision about renewing NJ Transit’s first dedicated source of funding, the Corporate Transit Fee, which raised $789 million for NJ Transit’s operating budget this year.

Sherrill did not say if she’d renew it, but said she’s committed to business tax relief and other ways to raise revenue for NJ Transit.

The fee is NJ Transit’s first stable funding source in 40 years and allowed it to avoid a fiscal cliff and deep service cuts experienced by other transit agencies. It expires at the end of the next governor’s term.

“Jack supports ensuring NJT has a stable source of funding, but opposes the so-called Corporate Transit Fee, which is a euphemism for an oppressive tax on business that makes New Jersey uncompetitive with our neighbors and pushes away jobs,” Russell said.

While commuters deserve reliable and affordable service, Sherrill said she’s committed to tax relief “because we already have some of the highest business taxes in the country.”

Sherrill said she wants NJ Transit to increase revenues from advertising on trains and buses and from NJ Transit’s real estate holdings.

Sherrill specifically suggested building transit-oriented housing on agency land at train stations and monetizing underused assets” such as surface parking lots.

Earlier this month, NJ Transit officials unveiled a similar 10-year non-farebox revenue plan estimated to potentially earn up to $1.9 billion by developing 8,000 acres of agency-owned property.

Ciattarelli proposed creating a unified Garden State Transportation Authority that will bring NJ Transit, the Turnpike Authority and the South Jersey Transportation Authority under one governing board, appointed by the governor, with the transportation commissioner as chairperson.

That authority will provide “better efficiency in how we provide transportation by eliminating the current bureaucracy,” Russell said.

“We can improve accountability and transparency, and usher in a better management structure,” Russell said, which reflects Ciattarelli’s larger approach to “eliminate duplication and waste, reduce unnecessary spending, and make state government more efficient and responsive.“

The mega agency would also “reevaluate every single train line and bus line for ridership data,” Ciattarelli said in an earlier interview with NJ Advance Media.

“Anything that’s not getting adequate ridership needs to be reevaluated and may be discontinued to dedicate more resources to routes that serve the greatest number of riders,” he said.

To reduce costs Sherrill said she will also seek ideas from “transportation leaders, the business community, labor unions, and community leaders.”

They would help develop “innovative solutions to highway infrastructure needs that allow the state to maintain critical investments while improving affordability for New Jerseyans,” she said.

Sherrill said NJ Transit would be included in a first “New Jersey Report Card” allowing taxpayers to see where their tax dollars are going and how that money is impacting their communities.

Both candidates said they want to avoid future toll and fare hikes.

To accomplish that, the winning candidate would have to change policies that allow for automatic 3% annual toll and fare increases. Ciattarelli will revisit all such decisions by the current administration, Russell said.

The Turnpike Authority contributed $470 million to NJ Transits operating budget this year. That could be reduced if NJ Transit earns money from other sources, reducing the need for funding paid for by tolls, Sherrill said.

Roads and bridges

The next governor also could decide the fate of the Turnpike Authority’s controversial proposed $10 million widening of the Hudson County extension between Newark Bay and the Holland Tunnel approaches.

Sherrill said she supports the first $6.2 billion phase of that project to replace the 70-year-old Newark Bay Bridge because it’s at “significant risk of failure due to its age.”

On the remaining widening of the Turnpike Extension, Sherrill said she’d seek “creativity from planners to move goods and people, while not imperiling health and safety.”

Ciattarelli is “generally supportive of the widening project and improving the safety and reliability of our infrastructure across the state, while ensuring local leaders and residents have a voice,” Russell said.

On other highway expansions, Sherrill said a comprehensive strategy should be developed to invest in infrastructure to improve road conditions, travel times, safety and reduce congestion.

As governor, Ciattarelli will push to establish his new Transportation Authority to improve the state’s approach to infrastructure “to be more efficient and coherent,” Russell said.

On issues about increasing service and train frequency on the troubled bi-state PATH rail system, Sherrill said she’d work with the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey to improve reliability.

The governors of both states appoint Port Authority board members and leadership.

“I will hold their feet to the fire on new investments in New Jersey PATH infrastructure, and will work to increase service and train frequency during workdays, weekends, and off-peak,” she said.

Ciattarelli looks forward to sitting with members of the Port Authority to address the best ways to deliver the highest level of safety and reliability for riders, Russell said.

In 2024, the state saw a 33% spike in pedestrian deaths. Sherrill said she would take the Trump administration to court to win back funds for canceled federally funded pedestrian and bike safety projects.

Ciattarelli would look for cost savings for funding to address that.

“We need to ensure safe bike and pedestrian travel for residents,” Russell said. “As stated earlier spending decisions are about setting priorities.”

Light Rail

The state has two pending light rail expansions in South Jersey and Bergen County.

Sherrill said she favors building the Glassboro- Camden and expanding Hudson-Bergen Light rail to Bergen County. She would “prioritize and invest in Bus Rapid Transit corridors in South Jersey to expand public transit options.”

While Ciattarelli supports South Jersey infrastructure investments, he doesn’t support the current proposed GCL route because of disruption to neighborhoods, downtown traffic, and multiple failed local referendums rejecting the project.

“He will not force the project down the throats of towns that voted against it. He will bring all stakeholders together to figure out whether there is any path forward that all sides can agree on,” Russell said. ”But local control matters here.”

On extending light rail to Bergen County, “Jack will prioritize any and all transportation infrastructure projects based on affordability and necessity to the state and residents,” he said.

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