Commuter rail plan for South Jersey advances

When New Jersey Governor John Corzine arrived late for a South Jersey announcement on Tuesday, he blamed traffic for his delay. And that traffic is what brought the governor to Woodbury to announce a mass transit project that could change the commute in the region.

When New Jersey Governor John Corzine arrived late for a South Jersey announcement on Tuesday, he blamed traffic for his delay. And that traffic is what brought the Governor to Woodbury to announce a mass transit project that could change the commute in the region.

Governor Corzine traveled to the Woodbury train station, where passenger trains haven’t stopped since the 60’s, to announce his support for light rail service from Camden to Glassboro. He says the project’s time has come.

Corzine: All of the things that are necessary are now in place and it’s time to get moving forward with this. I give you all my assurance, whatever it takes we are going to get this done.

A similar plan was proposed about 10 years ago and failed because of local opposition. Delaware River Port Authority head John Matheussen says officials believe they have come up with a workable solution.

Governor Corzine has pledged about a half-billion dollars of the project’s expected cost of well over a billion dollars. He says sources like the port authority and the federal government will have to provide the rest.