The Bergen Record reported Friday that transportation planners are closing in on a plan to bring mass transit to the Meadowlands. Specific details of the plan could not be obtained last week, but the news report presented a broad overview.

A centerpiece of the plan is use of diesel trains to extend Hudson Bergen Light Rail service over the Northern Branch freight line, from Ridgefield to Tenafly. Because this option is cheaper than the original electric light rail plan, it would open up NJ’s portion of potential federal funds for other Meadowlands transit projects. It is unclear whether the plan would require some sort of transfer along the Hudson-Bergen line between the electric and diesel-powered segments.

The rush for a Meadowlands transit link has been spurred by the Mills Corp’s recreational development, Xanadu, which will include offices, hotels, and retail, as well as indoor downhill skiing, an extreme sports park and other outlandish facilities.

The plan would connect NJ Transit’s Bergen County, Main, and Pascack Valley lines to the Meadowlands near Xanadu. It would link the Hudson-Bergen light rail to a Secaucus park and ride facility, and extend diesel light rail service from Hackensack to Hawthorne along the existing NY, Susquehanna and Western cross-county line.

Congressman Steve Rothman told the Record that the plan depends on transit funding levels in the federal "TEA-3" bill. So far, the Port Authority has contributed $150 million for the Meadowlands connection from the Pascack Valley Line. At its site, the Mills Corp is so far paying for road improvements, but not transit infrastructure.