I veto the idea of cutting conductors. How about this: Let's eliminate your job. People are so quick to try to eliminate those jobs not realizing that having too many unemployed people feeds into an adverse feedback loop.

Plus in this era when terrorists are everywhere, should we be eliminating conductors.

I have no problem with higher fares; I just wish NJT would get to work on expanding the train network and maybe have higher speed trains.

How about a better idea: eliminate all conductors and use a fare stamp system similar to the light rail.

Also, the highest paid NJ Transit employee, 2007 Gross Pay was Executive Director Richard Sarles, at $240,000


Gannett Data Source

There are no employees at NJ TRANSIT that make $300,000...not even close...There hasn't been a cost of living increase for employees in 20 years...average salary increase is 2-3% and many years salaries were frozen...for this reason, NJ TRANSIT employees standard of living is quite low for a state with the highest income per capita in the US...NJ TRANSIT employees work much harder and for far less than employees in similar industries...They make far less than Port Authority employees.

Quote:
Nooooo! What sense would that make ? So we should all take pay cuts and bring ourselves down to Third World status. Hey here's an idea everyone makes minimum wage then something or someone has to budge. To many businessn too many workers, and to many foreign guests in this country. As far as the wage cuts you propose... it reeks of communisim to me.

So, if I translate this into English it says basically that NJ Transit may have to eliminate capital improvements...and for some bizarre reason this translates into higher fares for riders.

Hmmm, I guess the way NJ Transit thinks is: capital improvements = fare hikes; NO capital improvements = fare hikes; expanding service = fare hikes; contracting service = fare hikes.

I wish I owned a company that ran that way.


How about something novel: Cut wages and salaries 20% across the board and an additional cut of 50% of for all wages and salaries over $300,000, and all salaries over $1 million are cut to $500,000.

From Bloomberg News:

N.J. Transit May Cut Projects, Raise Fares Due to Lease Deals


By Terrence Dopp
Jan. 26 (Bloomberg) -- New Jersey Transit may have to raise
fares more than 10 percent or defer maintenance to cover costs
related to $150 million in equipment lease deals at risk of
default following the ratings reduction of insurer American
International Group Inc., the agency?s executive director said.

The agency entered into 16 such transactions between 1994
and 2003 to pay for purchases such as new cars, Richard Sarles
told a state legislative panel today. New Jersey Transit will ask
the federal government to guarantee the deals or defer projects
for one or two years before turning to fare increases, he said.

?I hope we would not have to make it up at the fare box;
that?s the last place we?d want to go,? Sarles told the Assembly
Transportation Committee. ?I?m hopeful and optimistic something
will come? from the federal government.

Sarles said 31 transit systems nationwide are at risk of
defaulting on $1.5 billion in so-called lease-in-lease-out deals.
He said either the U.S. Treasury Department would need to approve
the funding on its own or it would need to be included in the
second round of the Troubled Asset Relief Program.

The deals allowed public transit systems to pay for rail and
bus purchases by selling equipment and depreciation credits to
banks in exchange for upfront payments. The banks then leased the
assets back to the agencies, using the depreciation to lower
their taxes.


Deals Unraveled


The transactions fell apart when insurers such as AIG and
Ambac Financial Group Inc. lost their top credit ratings. Sarles
said his agency has received letters from its banks notifying
them the contracts are in technical default, though no payments
have been missed. Default may force the agency to have to pay the
balance of the leases, Sarles said.

U.S. transit systems, already suffering from declining
ridership, rising labor costs and less state aid, may pay more
than $2 billion to banks after the downgrades triggered early
termination of the deals, Fitch Ratings said last month. The
payments may force increased borrowing, service cuts or deferred
maintenance, Fitch said.

?These sums, which are unbudgeted and could be sizable, if
required to be paid, will compound the existing and emerging
problems of lower sales tax revenue to support operations,
reduced fare box revenue as ridership declines with employment
losses, and the outlook for reduced state and federal funds for
capital needs,? Fitch said in a news release.


Hudson Tunnel


Sarles was invited by the transportation committee to
provide testimony on transit issues including the planned second
Hudson River commuter-rail tunnel. He said the state hopes to
receive a commitment from the federal government in March or
April on its request for $3 billion in funding for the project.

Construction on the new tunnel will begin this summer,
Sarles said. The state is looking for the money to be included in
an $825 billion economic stimulus package being worked on by
President Barack Obama and congressional Democrats.

?Actual construction will start, not just design work,?
Sarles said. ?We?re on track to begin construction this year.?

A group of congressional representatives from New Jersey and
New York earlier this month urged the project be included in
Obama?s stimulus package. Governor Jon Corzine said it would
double rail capacity into New York City and create or protect
44,000 jobs amid the U.S. economic slowdown.

New Jersey has asked the federal government for more than $3
billion for the $8.7 billion project and the Port Authority of
New York and New Jersey has committed $3 billion. The state set
aside $1.5 billion and will get another $1.25 billion from an
October toll increase on the New Jersey Turnpike and Garden State
Parkway, according to transit officials.