The Port Authority is developing plans to provide a rail link between Staten Island's Howland Hook Marine Terminal and Ports Newark and Elizabeth. The link would be established by building a connector between the S.I. Railroad freight tracks, which run west from Howland Hook to Cranford Junction in NJ, and Conrail's Chemical Coast Line, a north-south track that parallels the NJ Turnpike. Currently, one line crosses over the other. Connecting the tracks will allow double-stack access at Howland Hook and provide capacity for higher amounts of rail traffic. Under the Conrail acquisition, both lines will be shared by CSX and Norfolk-Southern Railroads. The project is not yet funded, but should cost about $10 million and will take two years.

Rail service to Howland Hook cannot begin, however, until the continuously delayed rehabilitation of the S.I. Railroad line is completed. Work on the Union County portion was not resumed last spring due to a dispute between the New Jersey DOT and the Port Authority over a $4 million funding shortfall. However, officials at several agencies have confirmed that an agreement to finance the project's completion is in the final stages, and could be announced within a week. Meanwhile, the portion of the line in Staten Island NYC's jurisdiction is nearly complete, with tests of the lift bridge over the Arthur Kill to begin next week.