According to an article by Patrick McGeehan in today's edition of The New York Times, Governor Chris Christie of New Jersey has Christie ordered a review of the cost, now estimated at $8.7 billion, of a proposed commuter train tunnel under the Hudson River that has received scant public notice in New York.

"Advocates for the project, which would add a second pair of tracks between New Jersey and Manhattan, say it will reduce traffic congestion and pollution, shorten commuting times, increase suburban property values and create 6,000 construction jobs," the article said, noting that even "before Mr. Christie became New Jersey's governor in January, the state's elected officials had already lined up $6 billion for the project from agencies outside the state."

The article said that Mr. Christie's move this month has many supporters of the project worried it "could signal its undoing."

"During the 30-day review, digging will continue on the New Jersey side of the river, but no new work will begin. 'If I can't pay for it, we'll have to consider other options,' Mr. Christie said last week," the article said.

"On Friday, New Jersey's two senators, Frank R. Lautenberg and Robert Menendez, and several other Democratic officials appeared at the site where digging began last year and urged the governor to reconsider. 'Don't throw away $6 billion; don't throw away thousands of jobs,' Mr. Lautenberg said," the article stated.

"'It's obvious there's going to be a couple billion dollars' shortfall,' said Raymond J. Lesniak, a Democrat who is chairman of the Economic Growth Committee of the New Jersey State Senate. But Mr. Lesniak said the state should find a way to come up with the additional money rather than 'let that kill this project.' He said Mr. Christie's decision to halt the project and review its cost was irresponsible because it could set back the schedule by several months," the article continued.

According to the article, "Mr. Lesniak suggested covering the excess costs by charging $2 per ticket to commuters who use the new tunnel. But that money would not be collected for at least eight years because the project is scheduled to be completed in 2018."

"On Thursday," the article said, "the governor discussed the project with Ray LaHood, the federal transportation secretary. 'Given that this project represents the single largest transit investment ever made by the Federal Transit Administration, the secretary and governor agreed to have staff work together to further refine the estimated cost of the entire project,' said Brian Farber, a spokesman for the transit administration. The federal government has agreed to match the $3 billion that the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey pledged to spend on the tunnel."

Zoe Baldwin, the New Jersey advocate for the Tri-State Transportation Campaign, told The Times that the review as "a very, very bad sign for the project," adding that "Killing this project would be an incredible loss for generations."

But Jeff Tittel, the director of the Sierra Club in New Jersey, said state and federal officials should use the "time out" to reconsider the configuration of the project, adding that "As proposed, the new tunnel would take trains from throughout northern New Jersey to a station more than 100 feet below street level at the foot of Macy's flagship store on 34th Street. Those tracks would not connect to Pennsylvania Station, a block away. Mr. Tittel is part of the vocal camp that has argued that the new tunnel should connect to Penn Station, as it was originally designed to do."

"Mr. Tittel," the article continued, "pointed out that Amtrak, which owns Penn Station, had drawn up a long-term capital plan that called for a separate new tunnel under the Hudson River, at an estimated cost of $11 billion....But Mr. Tittel argues that there must be a way to build one set of tunnels that would meet the needs of both railroads."