By: Najla Alexander
Middlesex County officials announced that the North Brunswick Train Station is progressing under the management of the Middlesex County Improvement Authority (MCIA), with recent approvals for 60% design and a funding agreement with NJ TRANSIT for the final design phase of the project.
The MCIA received formal approval from NJ TRANSIT, acknowledging the milestone and authorizing the agency to continue with Phase 3, Final Engineering and Design, MCPO officials say. This progress will push the project towards 90% design completion with the construction drawings, another critical achievement.
“With each milestone, construction drawings become refined and finalized to bring this a step closer to getting shovels in the ground,” said Executive Director H. James Polos.
In 2020, according to Middlesex County officials, the MCIA established a unique partnership with NJ TRANSIT that empowered it to manage the North Brunswick Train Station project. Under the agreement, the MCIA serves as the project manager overseeing the design and construction of the project and coordinates input from NJ TRANSIT, AMTRAK, New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT), the township of North Brunswick, and Middlesex County.
“With the MCIA leading the North Brunswick Train Station, they have been able to streamline a very complicated and cumbersome approval process,” said Middlesex County Commissioner Director Ronald G. Rios.
“The MCIA is proud to help implement Middlesex County’s Destination 2040 strategic economic plan. The North Brunswick Train Station is a key component to the future economy of our County,” said Chairman of the MCIA James Nolan.
"We remain grateful for the leadership of both Middlesex County and the MCIA, and the work led by Executive Director Jim Polos, in achieving this important milestone of 60% design approval for the much-anticipated North Brunswick Train Station," said North Brunswick Mayor Francis M. Womack. "
Funding for the project has been provided by the New Jersey Transportation Trust Fund (NJTTF) in the amount of $50 million. WSP USA is the contracted design and engineering firm managed by MCIA, MCPO officials said.