Lackawanna Cutoff responses diverse and passionate

Public hearing brings assurances of environmental safety but skeptics not moved Andover - The public hearing was on an environmental assessment, but all phases of the proposed Lackawanna Cutoff project were examined by a crowd at Perona Farms Tuesday. With management of the restaurant away on vacation, New Jersey Transit had plenty of room for charts, graphs and maps in the 60-seat Gold Room, for its presentation on the merits of the plan to rebuild the Cutoff as part of a commuter service from Scranton, Pa. to New York City. Passenger service on the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad was discontinued in 1972, and the tracks in New Jersey were sold off and ripped up. From the minute the line was sold in 1979, residents were asking themselves when the railroad would decide it was viable and spend more money to buy it back and rebuild it. They were right. Demographics and the somewhat unexpected decision of many commuters to move to Pennsylvania but still drive to work in Bergen County or New York City drove New Jersey Transit to decide the Cutoff would be needed once more. Commuters mostly think it’s a great idea. “It will take me off Route 80,” Denece Forenback, of Sparta, announced. She works at Shering-Plough and must travel to the Kenilworth Office at least twice a week, spending the other days in nearby Lafayette. “It took me two hours this morning,” she said. “My goal is to go from Andover to Penn Station in Newark and take the company’s free shuttle to the office.” While the commute may be nearly as long, commuting by train is different, noted Kenneth Miller of the New Jersey Railroad Historians. “Train commuters sleep or work on their laptops,” he noted. “I’d have it back in a heartbeat,” said Jane Cole, of Andover. “I don’t like truck traffic. I never minded the train and it went between my driveway and Route 206. Now I might have both, but I still think it’s a good idea.” Her friend, Leah Mallon, also from Andover, isn’t so sure. “It will bring development,” she said. “I can’t say how much, but it will be a selling point for houses. And more development will mean higher taxes.” The possibility of more development is the main concern of most of the opponents, including the North Byram Concerned Citizens who are actively protesting the project. Assemblywoman Alison Little McHose thinks their fears are exaggerated. “I lived near [Washington,] D.C. for 10 years,” she pointed out. “People said the same thing when the Metro came to Silver Springs. It didn’t lead to more development. It helped businesses and provided relief on the Beltway.” She said restrictions under the Highlands Act will limit development and pointed out, “It’s a commuter line. It’s not making Sussex County a destination.” She added, “It’s a positive for the county. It could lead to more bus routes to help people get to the train more easily. Both this line and the New York, Susquehanna and Western should be reopened.” Forenback noted, “Wetlands in this area will prevent most development.” The environmental assessment concedes there will be some development, but stresses it will come in the areas that are encouraged to develop under the Sussex County Planning Initiative, the town centers of Newton, Andover Borough, Byram, Stanhope and Hopatcong, because they are close to the Lackawanna tracks. It will not affect the county’s commitment to preservation, the plan stated. The environmental impacts of the plan are another concern. Margaret McGarrity, of Byram, noting she was speaking only for herself, not for the environmental commission of which she is secretary, said “I support a bike and hiking trail. This is for Pennsylvania, not for us.” She criticized the environmental assessment. “There is no discussion of the secondary impacts of more development.” While the assessment mentioned the Timber Rattler as an endangered species in the vicinity, she said it didn’t speak to the disturbance of the snake’s habitat when foliage is removed from the rocky walls of the cutoff. “It also didn’t address the dust and the visual impact. People are going to be surprised at what it looks like,” she added. She also contended it will increase traffic on local roads. The environmental assessment predicts a slight delay on the westbound approach to the Route 206, County Route 613 intersection, but doesn’t recommend a signal there because of the nearby signal at Route 206 and Smith Street. Because Andover would not be considered a major station stop, the assessment does not think there will be too much traffic. Most of the commuters are predicted to be from Pennsylvania, with the Pocono Mountain Station the busiest. The assessment predicts commuters will increasingly use the train to access the growing employment opportunities in Morris County and other New Jersey areas as well as New York City. There are planned to be limited station stops to get trains to the city in less than two hours from Andover, probably at Morris Plains, Morristown, Convent Station and Summit. However, a second proposal, to eventually run dual-mode trains from Andover to the Morris and Essex or Boonton lines in Dover and then straight through to New York Penn Station may attract other commuters. The locomotives necessary for that project aren’t yet in the possession of NJ Transit. They have to be of a type that can switch from diesel to electric. The tracks from Andover to Port Morris are not electrified, however, and diesel trains can’t run through the tunnels under the Hudson River, according to Jeff Stiles, the project manager. The Andover Station on Roseville Road is predicted to have about 300 trips a day, which means there will be 125 parking spaces. The presence of some wetlands in the area necessitate remediation, Stiles said. The station’s location concerns even supporter Forenback. She said it will be secluded and dark. Richard Roberts, chief planner from New Jersey Transit, said the rail line has a number of secluded stations and will provide open spaces and lighting as well as random patrols by NJ Transit police. Byram Township’s council has gone on record as opposed to the project, although Mayor Eskil Danielson said he is still listening to both sides. Congressman Rodney Frelinghuysen signed on to the project early. He secured funding for the project, according to his representative, Holly Kunzman. She read a statement from Frelinghuysen stating that mass transit is imperative in this densely populated state. The funding set aside by Frelinghuysen’s bill is $2.5 million. The capital costs of the project are estimated at $551 million with annual operating and maintenance estimated at $26.2 million. Even with a $10 one-way ticket from Andover to New York City, a subsidy will be necessary, but Roberts explained every form of transportation, including highways, has a subsidy. The next public hearing will be held Monday, Jan. 29 at the new municipal complex on Route 94 in Blairstown, near the other New Jersey station. The same format will be followed. The meeting will be open from 3 to 8 p.m. with presentations at 4 and 7 p.m.