TRENTON, N.J. -- "We feel good now to end Odd/Even effective tomorrow at 6am in NJ's 12 northern counties," New Jersey Governor Chris Christie tweeted Monday afternoon, referring to the odd-and-even gasoline rationing put in place Nov. 3 as a result of supply issues emerging out of Hurricane Sandy's devastating assault on the East Coast earlier this month.
The rationing, slated to end Tuesday morning, affected 12 central and northern New Jersey counties--Bergen, Essex, Hudson, Hunterdon, Middlesex, Morris, Monmouth, Passaic, Somerset, Sussex, Union and Warren.
"After two weeks in the recovery phase, we’ve achieved a new normal for life in post-Hurricane Sandy New Jersey," Christie told reporters Monday at a briefing held at a new Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) joint operations center in Lincroft, N.J., according to a CBS New York report.
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo instituted a similar odd-even gasoline-rationing plan in Nassau County, Suffolk County and New York City on Nov. 8. It is still in effect.
New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg said that city's odd-even gasoline rationing plan is working, but he would not say when the restrictions will be removed, reported CBS News.
“It’s hard to measure but it looks like there are a handful more gas stations open than there were yesterday and the day before. Anecdotal evidence is that lines are shorter and hopefully that’s true," Bloomberg told reporters. "I see no harm in leaving it in for a while. It's not that much of an inconvenience, people have gotten used to it already. Let's ride with it."
Bloomberg said it is hard to get accurate numbers to show how effective the gas rationing is, but said all evidence points to success in New York City.
"It's also true that if people think the lines are shorter, then they’re going to behave differently. They're not going to try to fill up when they’re down only a quarter of a tank," Bloomberg said.
The mayor also said the rationing is helpful while all gas stations get back to full functionality.
"With time, the distribution facilities that haven't been functioning will come back online," he said.
(See Related Content below for previous CSP Daily News coverage of Sandy-related gasoline rationing.)
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