PATH Train arrives Nwk Penn.JPG

A PATH train arrives at Newark Penn Station. A proposal to end overnight PATH service has been taken off the table by the Port Authority's chairman.

(Larry Higgs | NJ Advance Media)

Port Authority board chairman John Degnan said he will table a proposal to end overnight PATH train service.

In a Jan. 13 letter to State Senate President Steven Sweeney and state Assembly Speaker Vincent Prieto, Degnan said the proposal has been tabled after they met and the lawmakers requested the Port Authority end consideration of eliminating overnight PATH service.



"I have agreed to do so," Degnan wrote. "The panel's suggestion hasn't even been presented to the board of commissioners."



Degnan said no steps would be taken without appropriate study, public hearings and consultation with lawmakers in both states if the idea to end overnight service was reconsidered.



"It was not a good idea to begin with and there obviously was a lot of blow back on an idea that didn't make sense economically for the region or for people who work in the city and need to travel back and forth at all hours," said Len Resto, New Jersey Association of Railroad Passengers president.



Resto credited the strong opposition by Jersey City Mayor Steven Fulop, Hoboken Mayor Dawn Zimmer and the the Hudson County congressional delegation to the proposal for changing the minds of Port Authority officials. Opponents also launched a petition drive to save overnight service.



The announcement comes two days after Transportation Commissioner Jamie Fox criticized the idea of eliminating overnight PATH service.



"When Transportation Commissioner Jamie Fox said "this isn't a good idea," I think they realized they were out gunned," Resto said. "I can't imagine he wouldn't have said something without the blessing of the Christie administration."

Zimmer and Fulop issued statements thanking Degnan for listening to the community.

"With 56 percent of Hoboken residents using public transportation to commute each day, the highest rate, not just in the state, but in the nation, the success of our community and region is intrinsically linked to a robust mass transit system," Zimmer said in a statement. "Going forward, we should be focused on ideas to expand, not cut public transportation options within our region."

Low overnight ridership figures were cited by the Port Authority, but were criticized by transit advocates as being low, when compared to what people who rode the trains experienced. Officials estimated about 1,500 riders would be affected by eliminating over night service. But advocates and Hudson County officials said more transit dependent people rode the trains overnight.

"There is nothing else after NJ Transit (trains) stop running and PATH fills that gap," said Janna Chernetz, Tri-State Transportation Campaign New jersey Advocate. "In Hudson County, more than one third of the households don't have a vehicle. There would be no way people could get to those jobs that aren't standard 9-5 jobs. "You'd make it impossible for people to get to work."

Sweeney thanked Degnan for his willingness to work with the lawmakers and echoed that thought.

"This is a victory for the hundreds of thousands of New Jerseyans who ride on the PATH system, especially the low-wage workers and young people who rely on the line as their principal mode of transportation," Sweeney said in a statement.



The idea was contained in a Dec. 26 report by a panel formed by Governor Chris Christie and Andrew Cuomo about reforming the bi-state agency. Eliminating overnight service between 1 and 5 a.m. was proposed to save $10 million out of a $300 million PATH deficit. Other suggestions including hiring a third party operator for the rail line and changing the federal agency regulates PATH from the Federal Railroad Administration to the Federal Transit Administration.



A legislative hearing on the PATH report scheduled for Thursday morning has been postponed by Assemblyman John Wisniewski, D-Middlesex, due to the announcement and because Degnan was unable to attend.



"I think they realized it was an untenable idea and it wouldn't get any public or political support," said Thomas De Gise, Hudson County executive. "Hopefully that idea is tucked away forever."



The plan brought a firestorm of criticism against the Port Authority for eliminating a critical service for what amounted to a small cost savings for an agency beset by cost overruns for the redevelopment of the World Trade Center.

One suggestion made by De Gise, that might have saved the authority from the criticism is to have a board member from Hudson County, which is home to both tunnels, the PATH and the Bayonne bridge.



"All 12 towns in the county are affected by the Port Authority," he said. "Someone from Hudson County should be on that board."



Larry Higgs may be reached at lhiggs@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @commutinglarry. Find NJ.com on Facebook.