NJ TRANSIT COMPLETES CRANFORD STATION REHABILITATION
Project included Repairs to Platforms and Installation of a â¿¿Neuron Gardenâ¿ Artwork Display designed by Local Students
June 28, 2018
NEWARK, NJ – NJ TRANSIT announced today the completion of a more than $4 million platform rehabilitation and transit arts project to the Cranford rail station. The project was completed ahead of schedule and more than $2 million under budget.
“This project is another example of the investments we are making to ensure safety and comfort for our customers at our facilities,” said NJ TRANSIT Executive Director Kevin Corbett. “We’re especially pleased to include the inspirational ‘Neuron Garden’ art installation drawn by local children to enhance the transit experience.”
The Cranford Rail Station on NJ TRANSIT’s Raritan Valley Line serves approximately 1,500 customers each weekday, and more than 30,000 each month.
The rehabilitation, funded by the New Jersey Transportation Trust Fund (TTF), was awarded by the NJ TRANSIT Board of Directors to Anselmi & DeCicco, Inc. of Maplewood, NJ in November 2016. The project was planned and executed in stages to ensure the station was open to serve the regular Raritan Valley Line schedule.
In addition to the structural repairs, the project included a number of enhancements to customer waiting areas including new windscreens made of Arts in Transit-inspired safety glass; replacement of the canopy over the wind screens; and new benches, marketing display cases and trash cans.
The NJ TRANSIT Arts in Transit Program entrusted mural artist Ben Volta with the concept and design of the windscreen panel art installation. The “Neuron Garden” consists of a baroque glass artwork containing hundreds of native flowers drawn by local elementary and middle school students. The colorful composition fabricated into the glass platform windscreens present a fantasy garden overflowing with natural forms.
Volta conducted workshops with Cranford youth to create the public artwork during the summer of 2017. In the fall 2017, the windscreens were installed. Upon close inspection, the students’ whimsical interpretation of scientific imagery adds an additional layer for contemplation.
About the NJ TRANSIT Arts Program
The program was created to integrate artwork into the architectural design of transit facilities, creating inspirational places that improve the riding experience for customers and enhance the beauty of public spaces within communities. The Transit Arts Program was piloted with the Hudson-Bergen Light Rail project in 1994 and became a corporate-wide program in 1996. Today, NJ TRANSIT has more than 150 art installations through our transportation systems.
About NJ TRANSIT
NJ TRANSIT is the nation's largest statewide public transportation system providing more than 944,000 weekday trips on 251 bus routes, three light rail lines, 12 commuter rail lines and through Access Link paratransit service. It is the third largest transit system in the country with 165 rail stations, 62 light rail stations and more than 19,000 bus stops linking major points in New Jersey, New York and Philadelphia.
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