The contract, expected to be for about $9 million, was put out to bid after Gov. Christie last year objected to the awarding of a no-bid contract to STV Inc. of Philadelphia.
The awarding of the contract and the resumption of the environmental study have been held up by questions about how it would be paid for. The DRPA agreed to pay for the study, with assurances that it would be reimbursed by NJ Transit.
NJ Transit said last year that it didn't have the money, but Matheussen said Wednesday that he has been assured by NJ Transit chief James Weinstein that NJ Transit will reimburse DRPA promptly for the study's costs.
The environmental study is expected to take about two years, and if funding is forthcoming, trains could be operating on the line in six or seven years, DRPA vice chairman Jeff Nash said Wednesday.
The proposed line would run 18 miles alongside an existing Conrail freight line through Glassboro, Pitman, Mantua, Wenonah, Woodbury, Deptford, West Deptford, Westville, Bellmawr, Brooklawn, Gloucester City, and Camden.
The line would connect to PATCO and River Line trains in Camden, where passengers could catch trains to Philadelphia or Trenton.
At Wednesday's DRPA board meeting, Gloucester City business leaders urged the agency to "pick up the pace on this initiative," which they said would boost business and attract residents.
Bob Booth, chairman of the Gloucester City Business Association, said the rail line "will significantly increase economic development in towns along the line. . . . It's a no-brainer."
Carol Rhodes of Barnsboro, an outspoken opponent of the line, called on the board to pull the plug on the project, saying it was a waste of public money.
The project has made little progress since Gov. Jon S. Corzine touted the return of passenger rail service to the Glassboro-Camden corridor with considerable fanfare in May 2009 at an event at Woodbury's 1883 train station.
