New Hudson River Rail Tunnel Needed to Ward Off Commuter Nightmare
Rutgers alumna who heads up project outreach makes a case for why it’s necessary
'The damage is so severe the clock is ticking ... If we had to close down the existing Hudson River tunnel first, commuting from New Jersey would be a nightmare.’– Petra Messick
One of the key players behind an urgent push to build a new rail tunnel under the Hudson River and avert a looming commuter nightmare is Rutgers graduate Petra Messick.
Her role at Amtrak involves explaining why the project – which would make it possible to close and repair an existing tunnel heavily damaged by Hurricane Sandy – is vital to the entire Northeast Corridor region from Washington, D.C., to Boston.
“The damage is so severe the clock is ticking,’’ said Messick, an infrastructure planning manager at Amtrak, who earned a master’s degree from Rutgers Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy in 2004. “We need to take the tunnel out of service as soon as possible, but we can’t take it out of service until we build the new tunnel. If we had to close down the existing Hudson River tunnel first, commuting from New Jersey would be a nightmare.’’
Messick’s role in charge of outreach and communication for the project – referred to as the Gateway Program – gained a new sense of urgency this fall. A report released in October found the existing 104-year-old two-track tunnel sustained lasting damage as a result of being inundated by saltwater. The damage affects the communications and electrical systems and is expected to cause more frequent delays.
Meeting the demand for reliable rail service into New York City is an issue with national consequences. The Northeast Corridor line supports a $3 trillion regional economy, about 20 percent of the entire U.S. gross domestic product, Messick said. The rail line is essential not only for intercity travel on Amtrak but also for riders of eight commuter rail operators in five metropolitan regions: Residents in the Boston, New York-New Jersey-Connecticut, Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Washington, D.C., metro regions all take trains along the Northeast Corridor line to work.
The Gateway tunnel was proposed after Gov. Chris Christie canceled an earlier project known as ARC – or the Access to the Region’s Core – in 2010, citing concerns that New Jersey would be responsible for cost overruns. But the governor has expressed support for a jointly funded tunnel project.
The new tunnel would be the first phase of a larger infrastructure project to double rail capacity between Newark and Penn Station in New York City.
Construction of a replacement tunnel – including engineering, environmental permitting and construction – is expected to take 10 years. If the existing tunnel had to close for repairs before a replacement is built, the number of trains traveling from New Jersey into New York City would drop from 24 an hour to six, Messick said.
“It would be catastrophic,’’ she said. “You can’t run a city like New York when access is constrained by overburdened infrastructure. We have to provide the capacity for people to access jobs and everything else New York City has to offer.’’
Messick traces her interest in planning back to her high school days in the suburbs of St. Louis during a time when residents were moving out of the city into suburban tract housing built on farmland. She was interested in environmental issues and saw how development patterns were taking their toll.
Seeing the effects of the population shift near her hometown taught Messick that city living can be better for the environment.
“People living and working in densely populated places are doing so in an incredibly energy efficient manner because they can take the train, work in office spaces that share walls and use energy more efficiently than a spread out area,’’ Messick said.
Since transportation accounts for a third of carbon emissions, making cities sustainable places to live and work helps combat climate change, she said. Having a reliable transportation system is the lynchpin that helps cities thrive.
“By clustering jobs together you reduce auto trips and make rail transit a viable commuting option, consolidate delivery of goods and materials and create more energy efficient buildings,” Messick said.
Messick, who now lives in Brooklyn, had plenty of experience working on high-profile regional projects before she started at Amtrak. Her first job after receiving her undergraduate degree from Vassar College involved working on the rebuilding of the World Trade Center site with the Regional Plan Association.
That is where Messick learned about the importance of coalition building, a skill that is central to her current job. She pursued her graduate degree in city and regional planning from the Bloustein School while working in lower Manhattan.
Martin Robins, director emeritus of the Alan M. Voorhees Transportation Center based at the Bloustein School, remembers Messick as a standout student who had a deep understanding of, and passion for, planning issues. He has worked with Messick in her role at Amtrak as a trustee of the Raritan Valley Rail Coalition, a citizens group that advocates for a one-seat ride into New York City from Central Jersey.
Messick has met with the group to update them on Amtrak’s work. Robins said Messick plays a crucial role as the face of the Gateway tunnel project by building a relationship between the rail line and the public.
“She is extremely accessible,’’ Robins said. “She knows her subject matter; she is in contact with the decision makers at Amtrak, which has to do with their confidence in her. Having Petra there doing such a good job as a reliable source of information and assistance makes a huge difference toward advancing Amtrak’s interests.’’
For media inquiries, contact Andrea Alexander at 848-932-0556 or aalexander@ucm.rutgers.edu