NEWARK, NJ — NJ Transit is the recipient of a $519,750 federal grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Transit Administration to conduct a modernization study for Newark Light Rail that will examine options for improving station design and customer experience, as well as making four stations accessible to people with disabilities, according to a July 12 press release. The four stations to be upgraded are the only stations that are not already accessible to people with disabilities in the Newark Light Rail system. This study was one of 40 projects from 32 states and two territories selected to share $16.2 million to help reassess, redesign and improve transportation services in marginalized communities across the country.
“Reliable and accessible public transportation is a lifeline for underserved communities in New Jersey,” New Jersey Department of Transportation Commissioner and NJ Transit board Chairperson Diane Gutierrez-Scaccetti said. “These federal funds will help ensure that Newark Light Rail customers have optimal access to public transportation.”
“NJ Transit will now leverage these funds as a first step in implementing a series of accessibility, service and customer experience improvements on our vital Newark Light Rail system, which the many residents of our state’s largest city rely on as their primary travel option,” NJ Transit President and CEO Kevin S. Corbett said. “As NJ Transit continues to aggressively pursue federal grant opportunities, we are pleased to once again be the recipient of a critically important FTA grant.”
This grant will assist NJ Transit in its ongoing effort to engage and expand inclusion for customers with disabilities. This study will look to make Military Park, Warren Street/NJIT, Norfolk Street and Park Avenue stations accessible to people with disabilities as well as identify other customer experience improvements.
The grant is provided through the FTA’s Areas of Persistent Poverty program. FTA grants the awards on a competitive basis to state and local governments, transit agencies, and nonprofit organizations for planning, engineering, and technical studies or financial plans to improve transit in census-defined low-income areas.
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