
Pascrell plan to plug trust fund
Not a word on NJ’s high costs of Road Work
April 10, 2015 Last updated: Friday, April 10, 2015, 1:21 AM
By John Cichowski
The Record
Like Superman to the rescue, Bill Pascrell Jr. swooped down on his native Paterson on Thursday to save our roads, our rail system and, by extension, the whole federal transportation trust fund.
In a speech inside an NJ Transit bus garage to a crowd of local politicians, transit managers and businessmen, the 10-term congressman unveiled an ambitious plan calling for a $27.5 billion transfusion to bail out the ailing U.S. Transportation Trust Fund that will run dry May 31 if Congress doesn’t reauthorize funding.
“This legislation, if it passes, would provide a consistent, dedicated stream of money to fix our crumbling bridges, roads and transit system for the next 10 years,” he said to applause.
Everybody in this spacious Market Street venue had heard comparable speeches lately to rally the troops behind political efforts to cope with looming state and federal funding shortages that will likely arise if Congress continues to finance transportation with yearly doles that don’t keep up with inflation and increased demand.
Pascrell’s speech cracked the mold a bit.
https://www.northjersey.com/news/nj-state-news/pascrell-s-plan-targets-our-highways-byways-1.1306434