New Jersey lawmakers are looking to see if an access lane closure was ordered closed because of a refusal to back Gov. Christie’s re-election. In September, a massive gridlock tied up traffic in Fort Lee, at the base of The George Washington Bridge. The traffic was tied up for four days and the gridlock was caused by access lane closures to the bridge.
The allegations lawmakers are investigating are that the lane closures were retribution for the refusal of the Democratic mayor of Fort Lee to back Republican Christie in his re-election race last year. The lane closures caused a massive traffic pile-up in the town of Fort Lee. The first day of the closure occurred on September 9th; and the first day of school.
According to the Asbury Park News, e-mails were obtained and published on Wednesday, in a story by The Bergen Record. The series of e-mails are between David Wildstein, a longtime friend of Christie’s, his appointee to the Port Authority in charge of the bridge, and Bridget Anne Kelly, one of Gov. Christie’s deputy chief of staff. The e-mails have a vindictive motive.
New Jersey lawmakers have subpoenaed documents and e-mails. Gov. Christie said the lane closures were part of a traffic study and insisted that his staff or campaign had nothing to do with the project.
According to the Bergen Record, they asked Kelly to comment on the situation, they were told “I’m literally in the middle of a conference call. I’m going to have to call you right back.” Wildstein was also questioned and said the lane closure was part of a traffic study. In December he resigned saying the bridge closure scandal was a distraction. The deputy executive director of the Port Authority, Bill Baroni, another Christie appointee to the agency, also resigned in December. The Assembly Transportation Committee has subpoenaed Wildstein to testify on Thursday.
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