The line has seen two deaths this year.

PALMYRA, N.J. (KYW Newsradio) — Down the street from the town’s River Line Station, neighbors packed into the Palmyra Community Center for a meeting about recent safety and service issues on the NJ Transit line.

The meeting, organized by New Jersey State Senator Troy Singleton, came a little more than a week after a conductor died and 20 people were injured as a River Line train slammed into a tree that fell on the tracks during a Monday morning commute in Mansfield Township.

Neighbors in attendance also recalled a 15-year-old boy named Matthew who was hit by a train while crossing the tracks over the summer.

“They need to be safe, they need to play in their town,” Fran from Riverton said during the public comment section of the meeting.

Charles, also from Riverton, also cited safety concerns like dysfunctional signals at Palmyra’s end of the line.

“Gates come down when there’s no trains, and then gates don’t come down when there are trains,” he said.

Singleton said the meeting was to hear the concerns from the public, focus on the reliability of the River Line and give a presentation on plans to improve the service.

“I think our friends from NJ Transit have some ideas, some things they'd like to try to implement and change. And I want to afford them the opportunity to hear from commuters, but also to lay out some of those designs,” he said.

The presentation laid out a $19 million plan to fund repairs, new vehicles, install fencing and hire more staff, among other improvements.
According to NJ Transit, some of those designs are already underway or will be soon.

Original Article