The moment that some officials and commuters never thought would come happened Monday morning when two governors turned on a 500-foot-long machine to begin drilling the Gateway rail tunnel at the base of the Palisades in North Bergen.
Gov. Mikie Sherrill and Gov. Kathy Hochul flipped a ceremonial switch from the podium and the massive green cutter head on the first of two gigantic tunnel boring machines began slowly spinning.
Public officials expressed relief that it finally started and determination to finish the job, despite an ongoing court challenge by the Trump Administration to stop Gateway funding.
“I’ve dreamed about this day for a long time,” said Sherrill as she named members of congress, state and agency officials from both sides of the Hudson who got Gateway this far. “It’s hard to take it all in because this has been such a fight.”…