FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Douglas John Bowen, (201) 798-6137
James Ciacciarelli, (856) 988-5190
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NJ-ARP: MOM's PROUD PARENT CREDITS WORK BY OTHERS

As MOM Concept Nears 18th Birthday, State Rail Group Salutes Effort of Central Jersey Rail Coalition, Monmouth and Ocean counties, Others

LAKEWOOD, N.J., Sept. 28, 2004 -- Supporters of Monmouth-Ocean-Middlesex (MOM) passenger rail service gathering here today included MOM's birth parents -- the New Jersey Association of Railroad Passengers (NJ-ARP), including NJ-ARP member Greg Bender of Tom's River, the primary source of the MOM concept.

"We're the parents," said NJ-ARP President Douglas John Bowen. "And our child is ready for the real world. That said, the child wouldn't be ready to go -- and to grow -- if it weren't for a host of other dedicated parties as committed to MOM's implementation as NJ-ARP is."

Bowen credited efforts by the Central Jersey Rail Coalition in particular for rescuing MOM in the late 1990s, "after New Jersey Transit did what it could to let MOM die. The Coalition bolstered NJ-ARP's efforts, and often did what NJ-ARP couldn't do on the local level, particularly in Monmouth and Ocean counties. We're a member of the Coalition, and proud to be so; it deserves our profound thanks."

NJ-ARP also lauded Monmouth and Ocean county officials "for keeping the long-term game in focus, and for their tenacious support of MOM and its potential to serve numerous interior New Jersey points -- not just the 'New York commuter' crowd," Bowen said.

Indeed, the list of MOM supporters continues to grow, as evidenced by strong statements in the MOM Environmental Impact Statement not just from Monmouth and Ocean county sources, but from Middlesex County residents and others outside the region, as well, Bowen noted. "We're grateful to all those who support MOM -- including those we don't know of or fail to mention -- and urge everyone to bring MOM to operational reality in the near future."

NJ-ARP, founded in 1980, is the statewide not-for-profit citizens' advocacy group, based in Chatham, N.J.