NJ Transit will pay $15 million to replace train windows that have become so foggy over the years that Garden State commuters say they can barely make out the stops through the murk.
Commuter complaints about the nearly opaque slabs of polycarbonate have been rolling in since the fall of 2022, according to the Star-Ledger.
But NJ Transit hadn’t settled on a way to fix the problem — caused by reaction to the sun’s ultraviolet rays — until now.
“I was on a train yesterday going to New York for a meeting and had the same issue,” NJT CEO Kevin Corbett told the outlet.
Older, multilevel rail cars that hit the tracks between 2005 and 2007 are some of the most heavily affected, the outlet said.
They’ll also be the first ones to get new windows when they’re called in for their 20-year overhaul — a process Corbett said is happening right now.
They’ll also be the first ones to get new windows when they’re called in for their 20-year overhaul — a process that will begin shortly.
“The first 400 windows have been ordered and the program will begin over the next few months as those windows arrive, and railcars come in for scheduled inspections,” an agency spokesperson told The Post.
“We appreciate our customers’ patience as the process to replace all the windows in the entire fleet of multilevel rail cars advances.”
The new windows will ne installed as trains come in for regular maitenance, the spokesperson added.
A chemical NJT used to clean the cars may have worsened the problem, he added.
“The chemical may have exacerbated it, but it’s a UV issue,” Corbett said. “We were working with Rutgers to fix the existing windows and there is one solution that seems to work OK.”
But in the end, NJ Transit found that just chucking the windows was far more cost-effective.
