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Chris Christie Exaggerated Cost Of The Killed Hudson Tunnel Project
By
Christopher Robbins
Published Apr 10, 2012
Modified Apr 10, 2012
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By
Christopher Robbins
Published Apr 10, 2012
Modified Apr 10, 2012
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A report [pdf] released by the nonpartisan Government Accountability Office reveals that "straight-shooting" New Jersey Governor was more Dick Cheney than Annie Oakley when talking about how much the scrapped Hudson River tunnel project would have cost his state. Despite Christie's warnings of ARC costing as much as $14 billion, the report states that the actual cost according to state transportation officials, would have been no higher than $10 billion. And though the governor stated that New Jersey was shouldering 70 percent of the cost, the GAO report put it at 14.4 percent.
A spokesman for Christie told the Times that the governor's figures included a $775 million portal bridge, which was required, and the 70 percent "included the costs that would have been paid for by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which is run by both states, as well as federal highway and stimulus funds earmarked for New Jersey."
Christie also claimed that New Jersey was "on the hook" for any cost-overruns, but the GAO report stated that there was no such deal, and that the federal government offered to share those expenses. Christie's spokesperson said they weren't enough to make a difference.
But the former-largest public works project in the country is old news: how about promoting fiscal responsibility with lower taxes?
Tagged
arc
Chris Christie
delays
GAO
new jersey
trans hudson tunnel
Christopher Robbins
Christopher Robbins is a New York City reporter covering transportation, affordable housing, local politics, and criminal justice. His work has also appeared in New York Magazine, The Village Voice and The New York Times. Chris is a graduate of Patrick Henry High School in Roanoke, Virginia, and enjoys biking to Fort Tilden in the summertime.
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