PA big again dupes reporter on new Manhattan bus hub

At mid-afternoon on Tuesday, an NJ Transit 165 local bus to Hackensack flew through the Lincoln Tunnel. The round-trip senior fare is only $4.10.

By VICTOR E. SASSON
EDITOR

The Record's transportation reporter is proving to be as gullible as his predecessors on Lincoln Tunnel congestion and plans for a new bus terminal in Manhattan.

Today, Port Authority Vice Chairman Scott Rechler duped Staff Writer Paul Berger into writing an elaborate Page 1 argument for a new bus hub in New Jersey (A-1).

That would mean commuters from Ridgewood, Hackensack and other towns would have to transfer to a city-bound train, which won't be built for a decade or more.

What incredible nonsense. 

Of course, the Lincoln Tunnel is congested -- the Port Authority operates an exclusive bus lane only in the morning, and buses parked in New Jersey during the day have to fight rush-hour traffic to pick up commuters at the antiquated midtown Manhattan terminal.

Rechler and everyone else at the Port Authority fear the easiest and quickest solution to that congestion -- more exclusive bus lanes operated weekday mornings and afternoons.

They would be a victory for bus riders, but anger thousands of drivers whose toll money keeps the bi-state agency afloat.

On Wednesday, Hackensack senior citizens gathered for a St. Patrick Day's Luncheon of corned beef and cabbage at the city recreation center on Holt Street.

The buffet luncheon included entertainment.

Mayor John P. Labrosse Jr., second from left, and other City Council members posed for a photo.

Tax-exempt hospitals

Residents of Hackensack, Englewood and other towns with non-profit, tax-exempt hospitals are chagrined Governor Christie is seeking a moratorium on lawsuits that seek more money from them (A-1).

In Hackensack, officials settled tax appeals by agreeing Hackensack University Medical Center will pay the city $4.5 million over three years.

If medical center property was taxed fully, Hackensack would receive more than $10 million a year in new revenue, stabilizing or reducing taxes paid by homeowners and commercial property owners.

Local news?

A long story on Teaneck approving a preliminary school budget on Wednesday has Hackensack readers wondering why they haven't seen anything in The Record on their school budget plan, which was approved on March 1 (L-3).

If you're watching your cholesterol, be sure to steer clear of Axton's by Chef Anton Testino in far-off Pompton Lakes (Better Living).

The "huge" scallops come with bacon, pasta with crab meat is topped with pork, and cheese flows like lava out of the open kitchen (BL-16).

Restaurant Reviewer Elisa Ung doesn't say whether Chef Anton Testino will broil fish for a customer or hold the meat in his other dishes.

And despite her lukewarm, 2-star revue, she raves over the "luscious cannoli cream" in a totally superfluous dessert.