Governor Corzine announces agreement to allow DRPA to resume meeting

TRENTON, May 17, 2007.- Governor Jon S. Corzine today announced an agreement with the state of Pennsylvania that will allow the Delaware River Port Authority (DRPA) to resume meeting. The agreement in no way indicates New Jersey's consent to the Delaware River dredging project, and the state retains the ability to thoroughly review and deny any permitting associated with this project.

"This agreement will allow the DRPA board to resume meeting so it can fulfill its financial obligations and focus exclusively on maintaining and upgrading critical infrastructure in the Delaware River region," Governor Corzine said. "My position on dredging itself has not changed. I still have serious environmental and economic concerns about the wisdom and propriety of dredging. The burden of proof falls on those who believe this project should go forward."

The agreement transfers responsibility for the proposed project from the DRPA to the Philadelphia Regional Port Authority, which will allow the DRPA board to resume regular meetings. The DRPA board has not met since November 16, 2005, effectively freezing all major financial decisions and resulting in a downgrade of the Authority's credit rating. It is estimated that the inability to meet, and thereby refinance debt, has cost the authority close to $11 million.

Other key components of the deal:

- $19 million in DRPA funds which had been set aside for the dredging project will instead be used for environmental and port infrastructure improvements in New Jersey;

- In addition to New Jersey maintaining all of its rights to review and deny permit applications associated with this project, Pennsylvania has also agreed to seek an updated Environmental Impact Statement from the Army Corps of Engineers;

- Pennsylvania has agreed to work cooperatively toward the expansion of the PATCO line into Gloucester County, an important transportation priority for New Jersey; and,

- If at some point in the future all of the concerns surrounding this project are satisfactorily addressed and it is ultimately determined that it is in the best interests of the region for the project to proceed, Pennsylvania will bear all of the cost and accept all of the environmental spoils of the project.

The Delaware River Port Authority of Pennsylvania and New Jersey is a regional transportation and economic development agency serving the people of southern New Jersey and Southeastern Pennsylvania. DRPA owns and operates the Benjamin Franklin, Walt Whitman, Commodore Barry, and Betsy Ross bridges. Through a subsidiary, the Port Authority Transit Corp., DRPA runs the PATCO Speedline. DRPA also owns the RiverLink Ferry, the Philadelphia Cruise Terminal at Pier 1 and the AmeriPort Intermodal Rail Center.