Ground has been broken on the Access to the Region’s Core project, which will double rail capacity between New Jersey and NYC and transform transportation in the metropolitan region. But, Philip Barbara of Reuters writes in the Star-Ledger, federal officials are getting nervous as NJ’s Transportation Trust Fund inches closer to bankruptcy. In fact, these jitters may be holding up the release of the Federal Transit Administration’s promised “full funding grant agreement,” which would complete financing for ARC:

In an inter-agency report late last month, the U.S. Department of Transportation expressed concern that without a credible fix to the state’s Transportation Trust Fund, New Jersey won’t be able to maintain its infrastructure and enable NJ Transit to expand its rail system to make efficient use of the tunnel.

What’s more, a Federal Transportation Administration spokesman said in an e-mail that Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood “in conversations with Gov. Chris Christie has made it clear” that Washington wants to see reliable sources of funding in place. The FTA spokesman declined to answer whether the federal funding is contingent on the state solving its trust fund problem.

By the middle of next year, all of the revenue the Trust Fund receives from the gas tax and other sources will go to pay for debt on old projects, leaving the state with virtually no money for transportation projects.  According to Barbara, “renewing the trust fund will move to the top of the [Christie] administration’s agenda once the state budget has been passed by July 1.”  If it isn’t renewed, the result could be a halt in bridge, road, and transit projects all over the state — and a half-built tunnel under the Hudson.

More Signs of the Budgetary Times: The Grass Keeps Growing

Social workers sometimes watch for unkempt lawns or peeling paint, knowing that signs of neglect outside a home can point to problems within. Apparently, the principle also applies to states. In last week’s Bergen Record “Road Warrior” column and yesterday’s Journal News, drivers complained that NJDOT and NYSDOT have let the grass grow wild alongside state roads. The grass is reportedly the height of a car’s side mirror in some places, and is reducing visibility as people try to merge onto the highway.

In both cases, the out-of-control greenery is the result of maintenance cutbacks ordered in response to the states’ respective budget crises. New Jersey’s transportation funding problems are detailed above. Meanwhile, New York is inching closer to a government shutdown as its politicians continue to fight over the state budget, which is now over 2 months late. New York’s financial condition has already squeezed smart growth programs out of the State DOT’s capital plan and held up New York City’s federally funded stimulus projects. Contractors now warn the budget standoff is imperiling 232 road and bridge projects scheduled to begin this year.