New Yorkers Saddled With ‘Unfair' New Jersey Fees

By ANNIE KARNI, Special to the Sun
April 5, 2007

New Jersey is discriminating against New Yorkers: That is the message the City Council speaker, Christine Quinn, is sending to Governor Corzine.

In an open letter yesterday to the New Jersey governor, Ms. Quinn and Council Member John Liu called on New Jersey Transit to abolish a $3.50 surcharge it levies on passengers riding between Pennsylvania Station and Newark Liberty International Airport, calling it "wrongheaded," "discriminatory," and an "unfair" burden on New York commuters.

Mr. Liu, who heads the City Council's transportation committee, recently threw his support behind a project that would benefit New Jersey: the construction of the Trans Hudson Tunnel, which would add a two-track rail tunnel beneath the Hudson River and allow for more New Jersey Transit commuter trains to run into Manhattan.

"I was questioned why I was supporting New Jersey Transit when they are ripping off New Yorkers," Mr. Liu told The New York Sun yesterday. He said he supports the tunnel because it benefits the entire metropolitan region, but that the surcharge is an issue of "basic fairness" and an example of "discriminatory treatment" of New Yorkers by New Jersey.

"It's not necessary to speculate why it is that they did this in the past," Mr. Liu said. "The important thing is that they discontinue it going forward."

New Jersey's commuter railroad is considering raising the surcharge to $4, and its board is expected to vote on the surcharge hike later this month.