Daunting problems for N.J.'s new DOT chief

James Simpson, the new commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Transportation, inherits plenty of problems as he takes over the sprawling agency.

The state Transportation Trust Fund is running dry. The condition of New Jersey's crowded highways is the worst in the nation, according to federal data. NJ Transit ridership is down and fares are slated to increase 25 percent. The state's toll collectors recently drew unwanted attention for hundreds of complaints by motorists about nasty behavior.

And then there are the New Jersey Turnpike rest stops.

For many who don't live in the state, "New Jersey is defined by its turnpike," said Simpson, a Brooklyn native who is moving with his wife and two young children from Wayne, Delaware County, to Princeton for his new job. Traveling the turnpike, he said, is "a negative experience."

"I won't let my kids go in the bathrooms. I wait till we get to another state."

A turnpike service area "should be a destination . . . instead of just a grungy place to stop," Simpson said. Maybe each could feature a Jersey-theme restaurant (think diner) or a bookstore, he suggested.

Simpson is even pondering selling naming rights to the rest stops, replacing historical figures such as Woodrow Wilson and Molly Pitcher with corporate sponsors like Nike and Microsoft.

The fast-talking airplane pilot and former truck driver, who was administrator of the Federal Transit Administration during the administration of George W. Bush, is looking for ways to make or save money because Gov. Christie has vowed not to raise taxes or tolls as he tries to fill an $11 billion state budget deficit.

The commissioner says he plans to shift employees to more productive jobs, end duplicative or wasteful operations, improve transparency and work standards at the Turnpike Authority, and fix roads before building new ones.

He wants a dedicated source of funding for NJ Transit, perhaps from auto tolls.

"The hardest challenge I have is finding the funding," Simpson acknowledged in a recent interview in his Trenton office. "Everything I see is dollars and cents."

Simpson, 54, served from 1995 to 2005 as a commissioner of the New York State Metropolitan Transportation Authority, sitting on its finance, New York City transit, and governance committees. He later cofounded Spartan Solutions, an infrastructure management firm, and directed its Philadelphia office.