(The Newark Star-Ledger posted the following article on its website on October 3. Robert Vallochi is the BLET’s General Chairman for New Jersey Transit.)
NEWARK, N.J. — Power problems stalled dozens of NJ Transit and Amtrak trains this morning disrupting the morning commute for thousands of passengers.
Some waited for trains that ended up being canceled. Others sat on stalled trains. Many had their trips rerouted.
But the inconveniences did not match the chaos that occurred in May when a massive electrical failure crippled Amtrak’s Northeast Corridor tracks from Washington, D.C,. all the up to Boston.
Railroad workers say officials seemed to have learned some valuable lessons from the mayhem in May, when one train was stuck in a tunnel beneath the Hudson River for hours.
This time when a small amount of power returned, railroad dispatchers directed trains one by one to the nearest station, instead of letting then start moving all at once and drawing down the power, according to the head of the union that represents NJ Transit.
Also, the dispatchers were careful not to send any trains through the Hudson River tunnel when power was weak, said the union’s general chairman, Bob Vallochi.
“They learned form last time,” Vallochi said.
Still, commuters were unhappy.
Sheri Graham of Highlands left the Red Bank NJ Transit station on a local train on the way to her job in Linden. Around Avenel, passengers were told the train would not be making local stops and would go straight to Newark instead, she said.
“I was stranded in Newark,” she said.
Graham said she’s supposed to be at work at 9. But at 10:15 a.m., she was still in Penn Station waiting for a train to take her back to Linden. She said she called her job to let them know she’d be late.
“My boss will understand because I’ve been there 21 years,” she said. “But I’m going to lose money since I only get paid after I punch in.”
Graham complained that NJ Transit should have told passengers the train wasn’t going to be making any more local stops before closing the doors and starting on its way to Newark.
The cause of the power problems remained unclear early this afternoon. All trains are now running on or close to schedule, NJ Transit reports.