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(Photo: New Jersey Transit).

Murphy orders NJ Transit audit

By David Wildstein, January 22 2018 10:58 am

Gov. Phil Murphy today signed an executive order that will require an independent audit of New Jersey Transit.

“This is an agency that must be boiled to its essentials and put back together again,” Murphy said.

One reality the new governor must consider is that audits take time – months at best, if everything run smoothly – and NJ Transit riders could grow impatient before the process of fixing public transportation issues is complete.

Murphy made his announcement the Summit train station, with two legislators who have been harsh critics of NJ Transit, State Sen. Loretta Weinberg (D-Teaneck) and Assemblyman John McKeon (D-West Orange), at his side.  Two of the Republicans who represent Summit, Senate Minority Leader Tom Kean, Jr. (R-Westfield) and Assemblywoman Nancy Munoz (R-Summit) were also there.

Assembly Minority Leader Jon Bramnick (R-Westfield), who has been busy with his own plan to rebrand the New Jersey Republican Party, was not in attendance.

Assembly Speaker Craig Coughin (D-Middlesex) applauded Murphy’s move.

“The Assembly and Senate have been working hard together to devise legislative fixes for NJ Transit, but without a partner in the governor’s office only so much could be done,” Coughlin said.

“The Legislature’s efforts will continue, but this audit will provide added insight as we work to ensure a dependable transportation system for our commuters,” said the new Assembly Speaker. “As I’ve made clear – government must be able to do the basics. That means fixing NJ Transit and getting people to work on time. I welcome Gov. Murphy’s common-sense step and look forward to incorporating the results into the Legislature’s efforts.”

(Note: I appreciated the opportunity to listen to Gov. Murphy’s remarks from Advance Media’s Brent Johnson’s Twitter feed.)

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