One of the best things about living in my small South Jersey town is living in close proximity to both Philadelphia and Atlantic City. For a 23-year-old, both of these destinations serve as hubs for entertainment.

Once, I turned 21 I began to frequent both of these places. A night full of dancing or gambling always meant being the designated driver until, I learned just how easy and cheap it is to get back and forth via the train. Whether my night is spent at a beach bar or deep in the heart of brotherly love, it usually starts and ends in the same place... on an NJ Transit Train.

On Monday, August 20th, I found myself sitting on a bench waiting for a train from Lindenwold to Hammonton. When my friend and I were going to sit down, we noticed a heavy transit police presence. After several minutes we were assured that nothing was wrong. However, the executive director of New Jersey Transit, Kevin Corbett, was present on the far end of the platform to allow commuters to give their feedback and ask questions about an upcoming suspension of service.

I didn't bother to ask any questions or give my strongly opinionated feedback because as a communication major, I know exactly what types of responses I would get. All of Corbett's PR training and experience would come out to play in these interactions so I figured I would avoid the frustration.

With the end of summer, will come a suspension of all trains on the Atlantic City line, forcing commuters from Atlantic City all the way to Philadelphia to utilize other forms of transportation. The suspension is set to take place from September 5th, 2018 through early 2019.

The reasoning is, allegedly, because of a government mandate to install PTC or "positive train control" on rail lines by December 31st. But, for NJ Transit that apparently is not long enough as according to NBC, they have already stated that they will not meet that deadline. However, The Philadelphia Inquirer and Bergen Record acquired internal emails that expressed a different sentiment. During the suspension, the cars from the Atlantic City line will be moved onto lines in North Jersey to help out with some of their more densely populated commutes.

With this information has come a whirlwind of speculation and conspiracies. One of the rumors circulating is that it is not necessary to fully suspend the line for the duration of the installation period.

Instead of asking Corbett directly, I said to a transit police officer, "Rumor has it that the lines don't actually have to be shut down to install PTC." I then asked him if this was true. His answer... was a yes. A "yes" followed by a statement saying that the trains in North Jersey have more riders and that they are in need of more cars. This statement seemed a little irrelevant if you ask me.

While Corbett has been trying to reassure the public that this isn't NJT trying to subtly suspend the line indefinitely, the information circulating doesn't exactly stand by that notion.

If the master plan isn't to rule out the Atlantic City and a suspension of this magnitude is unnecessary, why is it being forced upon paying customers who clearly are not in favor? And why will North Jersey obtain our cars that we in South Jersey could actually be using?

But the even bigger question here is, why are North Jersey commuters being prioritized over that of South Jersey?