[First Reprint]

SENATE, No. 1859

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

INTRODUCED MARCH 3, 1997

By Senators CASEY, BRYANT and Sacco

An Act concerning rail transportation and supplementing Title 27 and Title 48 of the Revised Statutes.

    Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

    1. A right-of-way of a railroad line in this State used for rail passenger service by a railroad company shall contain a marker along the right-of-way at every ¹[one-tenth ] one-third¹ of a mile interval indicating the mileage so that the marker may be used to identify the location of a train in the event of an emergency. The markers required by this section shall be installed no later than one year following the effective date of this act.

    2. A right-of-way of a railroad line in this State used for rail passenger service by the New Jersey Transit Corporation shall contain a marker along the right-of-way at every ¹[one-tenth ] one-third¹ of a mile interval indicating the mileage so that the marker may be used to identify the location of a train in the event of an emergency. The markers required by this section shall be installed no later than one year following the effective date of this act.

    3. Not later than six months following the effective date of this act, the New Jersey Transit Corporation shall develop an emergency response access plan for railroad lines in this State used for rail passenger service. The plan shall evaluate the accessibility of the various sections of those rail lines to emergency service vehicles and shall recommend what steps should be taken to improve emergency vehicle access. In particular, consideration shall be given to the construction of access roads to the railroad rights-of-way, the construction of paved or graded roadways and pathways, using crushed stone or other material, along the right-of-way adjacent to the tracks so that emergency vehicles will have access during inclement weather conditions, and any other measures necessary to insure the accessibility of rail lines to emergency rescue vehicles in the event of an accident or emergency. The plan, along with any accompanying findings, conclusions and recommendations, shall be submitted by the board of the corporation to the Commissioner of Transportation, for the commissioner's consideration, and shall include recommendations for appropriate funding to be included in the commissioner's report of proposed projects to be submitted pursuant to section 22 of P.L.1984, c.73 (C.27:1B-22).

    4. This act shall take effect immediately.

Requires NJT to install mile markers and develop emergency response access plan for railroad lines.