Senator Richard Blumenthal to hold hearing on Metro-North Railroad power failure

 

BRIDGEPORT - U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, (D-Conn. will act as chairman for a field hearing of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation subcommittee on Surface Transportation and Merchant Marine Infrastructure, Safety and Security on the recent Metro-North power outage at 10 a.m. Oct. 28 at Bridgeport’s City Council Chambers, 45 Lyon Terrace, according to a release.

"The hearing will examine the causes of the outage, how to prevent such failures from reoccurring, and the economic impact of such a major service disruption," according to a release.

The hearing will be streamed live online at http://www.blumenthal.senate.gov/live, the release said.

 

"Among those testifying at the hearing include ConEdison President Craig Ivey, MTA Metro-North Railroad President Howard Permut, Connecticut Transportation Commissioner Jim Redeker, John Hartwell of the Connecticut Rail Commuter Council, Amtrak President and CEO Joseph Boardman, and Otto Lynch from the American Society of Civil Engineers and Joseph McGee of the Business Council of Fairfield County."
 U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., and U.S. Reps. Jim Himes, D-4 and Elizabeth Esty, D-5 also are to testify, the release said.

 

"Blumenthal has called the disruption unacceptable and inexcusable, and has demanded that New York-based utility ConEdison be held accountable for the lack of adequate contingency plans for such a power failure. He has joined Senator Charles Schumer (D-NY) in calling on the federal Office of Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability and the New York Public Service Commission to conduct an investigation into the cable failure. Blumenthal has also advocated for increased investment in rail and transportation infrastructure."

 

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Express bus adds stop in North Haven, new trips

Adapted from a press release from the state Department of Transportation:

The schedule for the No. 20 New Haven/Hartford Express bus will be expanded as of Monday, with additional trips, more convenient timing and a new bus stop in North Haven.

The schedule changes and changes in stops were made to take into account work schedules and employees in both New Haven and Hartford. The route also serves New Haven’s Union Station.

“I am happy to say that we have found a way to cost-effectively improve service for our existing customers and to attract new customers,” said acting DOT Commissioner James Redeker. “The new schedule makes this route a great alternative for commuters to avoid driving alone to work along the Interstate 91 corridor.”

Additional trips have been added to both the morning and afternoon schedule and an additional stop will be added at the Devine Street Park & Ride Lot B, near Exit 10 off Interstate 91 in North Haven (shown at right).

The route will continue to serve the Middletown/Country Club Road Park & Ride Lot near Exit 20 off I-91. However, the stop at the Park & Ride Lot at Wolcott Hill in Wethersfield will only be served by New Haven-bound buses in the morning and Hartford-bound buses in the afternoon.

New schedule and route information can be found at www.cttransit.com.

Emergency Q bridge repairs to begin

By Ed Stannard
Register Metro Editor

NEW HAVEN — Emergency repairs to the Pearl Harbor Memorial Bridge will begin this week and carry a $950,000 price tag.

A no-bid contract, which will be 80 percent paid for with federal money, was recently given to Cianbro Corp. of Pittsfield, Maine, according to Department of Transportation spokesman Kevin Nursick.

Read the full story at nhregister.com.