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- This is One-On-One.

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(upbeat music) - Hi everyone.

Steve Adubato.

That's right.

FIFA, the World Cup.

It is an historic event here in New Jersey over at the Meadowlands.

Alex Lasry will be with us in a second and just tell us what the exact name of the stadium is.

It's not gonna be MetLife.

Alex is laughing already.

Moving the masses, navigating getting ready for the FIFA World Cup.

Kris Kolluri, President and CEO of New Jersey Transit, and in his spare time the Executive Director of the New Jersey Turnpike Authority.

Michele Siekerka, CEO and President, New Jersey Business and Industry Association.

Alex Lasry, CEO of the FIFA World Cup 26, New York New Jersey Host Committee.

Thank you all for joining us.

So Alex put this in context for us.

World Cup, a huge deal for the region because?

- Well, it's gonna be the largest sports and entertainment event that the region's ever seen.

Just to put in perspective what the World Cup is.

The last World Cup final was viewed by the same amount of people as the last 13 Super Bowls combined.

So if football is America's sport, you know, fútbol is the world sport and we're gonna be welcoming the world to New York, New Jersey, and in just under 30 days.

- Yeah, and moving people is gonna be a real challenge.

And lemme disclose New Jersey Transit, a new underwriter of our programming and also we're media partners with the Business and Industry Association.

Kris, talk about how challenging to move people, where they need to get to, to get to those games.

And then we'll talk about the cost.

- Yeah, look, let me join Alex in saying that this is exciting.

This is that opportunity to showcase New Jersey to the world and our economic strength.

And our cultural diversity.

So that's, so we're excited about it.

And New Jersey Transit has an obligation to move 40,000 people per game, or 51% of the total number of people that'll be going to the game.

And this will be the largest movement of people we've ever made to a single event.

And I think we've been working at it for many years and we're prepared to.

- Real quick, before I go to Michele on the economic impact, there are several ways to travel to the World Cup.

Explain that, Kris.

- Yeah, so Alex and his team are gonna, the host committee are moving about between 12 and 18,000 people depending on the games.

Then the FIFA has about 22,000 people and then we have about 40,000 people that we're gonna move for a total of about 78,000 people.

- Trains, buses?

- Trains, buses, and then park and rides that Alex is gonna run near, where is it, Alex?

Is it Clifton?

- Yeah, so there'll be a park and ride that will be running, that'll be outta Clifton, New Jersey at the Hackensack School of Medicine.

We'll also have two or three spots in New York City to be able to move people.

So, you know, this is gonna be a joint effort between New Jersey Transit, the host committee, and all of our local transportation partners to ensure that we're able to get people to and from the game in a safe and efficient manner.

- Yeah, that's a Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine.

Check that location out.

Michele, you and I were talking offline about this the other day.

This confusion in my mind, and I'm not alone on this in terms of the economic impact, the benefits to New Jersey and the region.

Then again, we'll talk about the cost of pulling this off and who should be paying for it versus who's paying for it.

Go ahead, Michele.

- Well let's talk about, you know, the direct economic impact is probably about $3.3 billion.

And that's really when you bring it in 1.3 million visitors into our state and our region all across the state, there's spending power, let alone we have about a billion dollars in labor income that we're gonna appreciate from additional all hands on deck jobs across this, I think to the tune of about 26,000 jobs.

Alex probably has these great stats as well.

So, you know, during the actual time of the tournament, the actual days of the entire activity here, that's where the massive, you know, impact of direct economic impact we can benefit here in the state of New Jersey.

- And let's be clear, the days we're talking about, the matches start on June 13th.

The final is on July 19th.

This programming will do everything we can to put this programming on the air about the World Cup over in the Meadowlands during that period of time.

Also, last time the World, the World Cup was here in 1994, Alex?

- Yep.

So the the last Men's World Cup was here in 1994.

We hosted a Women's World Cup in 1999.

So, you know, this is a big deal and the scale and scope of these events from media, attendees, economic impact is exponentially bigger than it was in 1994 when we last hosted.

And I think our hope for these games is that at the end of this, after we've put on what is going to be the most successful World Cup final in history, that we can show that New York, New Jersey is the tourism, sports, and entertainment capital of the world.

- Okay, let's talk money.

Kris, together with the governor, the governor, Governor Sherrill's been very clear on this.

She has said very specifically that FIFA, it's a direct quote, FIFA should be paying for transporting people to and from the games.

That's not the case.

Originally, the round trip from New York Penn Station to the location over by the Meadowlands was 150 bucks round trip, that was proposed.

It is now, as we speak on the 19th of May, $98.

Don't know if that's the final number.

Is that the final number Kris?

- It is the final number.

- Okay.

The governor says that she's doing this so that the regular commuters of New Jersey Transit are not bearing the freight, bearing the weight and that FIFA should be paying.

You say?

- So I, not only do I agree with her, I've actually implemented the principle that she's laid out from the very beginning.

I actually think it's a pretty straightforward proposition.

The fans who are gonna enjoy the game, who are on average gonna pay somewhere between a thousand and $1,500 per ticket should bear the brunt of the cost.

And not a hotel worker or a nurse who takes the train every single day or a bus every single day.

In the end, we have made a deal with the host committee and others to make sure we move these fans in a safe and efficient manner.

And we're going through extraordinary lengths to make sure we execute on that plan.

And there's cost associated.

So the governor has said, and I believe that we are now able and ready to do it.

And the cost of that is $98 per person for a cost of about $6 million a game.

- From Penn Station, New York to where exactly?

- All the way to few steps away from the gates of the new, the, the brand new stadium, whatever you're calling it, Alex.

- Okay.

By the way, what's the name, Alex?

- The New York, New Jersey Stadium.

But we can call it MetLife.

It's fine.

- Okay.

We are gonna call it MetLife, just so you know.

Okay, great.

Because that's the name.

How about this, before I go back to Alex on the FIFA piece, which we really need to get clarity on, Kris Kolluri, the impact, and I'm not gonna make this about our son who travels into New York every day to his job, millions of others do who live in New Jersey, use New Jersey Transit to travel in.

What will be the impact for all of the regular New Jersey Transit commuters?

- So the good news about New Jersey is we are not a mass transit desert.

We have buses that'll still run on time and as planned, trains, except for the ones leaving Penn Station only for those few hours before the game, will still be able to go into Penn Station and during and after the game, they'll be able to leave Penn Station like normal.

Path will still work, Amtrak will still work, ferries will still work.

So we have all the options that people have usually that'll still be available.

Even though during those four hours, Steve, when there's gonna be a diversion plan at Penn station, the Path Station is literally a block and a half away from the current Penn station and New Jersey Transit is gonna cross honor those folks who take the train to either Hoboken or New Newark.

So as far as the rest of the commuters are concerned, we want them to not only do, go about their business if they need to, but if you can work from home, great.

If not, you have options to get around.

- I'd have to come back to Alex and Michele, this is, I'm not gonna pull you into this, Michele, 'cause apparently you were not involved in the negotiations with FIFA as I understand it.

But here's the question.

Why isn't FIFA picking up the cost of transportation Alex?

They're making a lot of money on this.

- Well, I think if you look at all the contracts that were signed around the country when the bids were happening, it was, you know, it was clear that FIFA, you know, wasn't going to pick up the tab and isn't responsible for transportation.

With that being said, the host committee has been working with New Jersey Transit, the governor's office, the governor of New York, mayor of New York, to make sure that we're able to ensure that fans have affordable and accessible transportation to and from the games.

You know, we've worked with New Jersey Transit to help cover the cross honoring that Kris just talked about.

So the host committee is putting up, you know, three and a half million dollars to ensure that we're able to cross honor so that the everyday commuter isn't gonna be paying any higher of a fare.

The host committee is putting together a shuttle service that is going to help alleviate some of the roadway congestion that could come from, you know, more ride share or people trying to arrange their own cars.

So we've actually increased our capacity from the original 10,000 passengers to 12 to 18,000 and dropped our price from $80 to $20 round trip, whether you're coming from New York or coming from New Jersey.

So I think if you're looking at the breadth of transportation options that you have to be able to get to the game, you're going to have a lot of really great options that will get you right to the stadium.

And I think that's important to know these are options that are gonna get you right to the stadium and get you there on time for the game in a way that that's gonna make sure that fans are able to enjoy the game.

And the last thing I would say is if for some reason, you know, if fans and anyone thinks that and feels that the game is out of reach, it is also why the host committee, along with the governors of both states and the mayor of New York have been putting on these fan, are putting on these fan festivals to ensure that the experience outside the stadium rivals what happens inside.

And that people from all over the world and all over the region can enjoy the games.

- Michele, I'm really curious about this.

You and you've been on with us so many times talking about the challenges that businesses face, large, medium, small business.

Can we talk restaurants and hotels here?

Let's get more granular and specific.

Realistically, to what degree do you believe hotels in and around the Meadowlands, not in, no disrespect to New York City.

We are a New Jersey based operation.

We're more interested right now in the economic impact for New Jersey.

I know there's a regional benefit, but to what degree do you believe the hotels will have an economic boon, if you will, and the restaurants?

Not that you can predict like Nostradamus exactly what's gonna happen, but what does it look like, Michele?

- Well, I think it's looking good.

It's starting to look better actually.

I think some weeks ago or some months ago, there was some concern that the pickup was a bit slow.

I think what we hear from the hotels today is they realized maybe they have to adjust their price sale a little bit to be competitive in order to, to attract local- - Too high, too high?

- I think some started out too high, right?

We also have, you know, these new assets that we didn't have decades ago called Airbnb and VRBO.

A lot of people are taking advantage of that.

And so that always has a pressure point, you know, on the hotels for sure.

And then as the marketing aspect, we have to make sure that these great assets are visible and available and there's a lot of marketing going on right now.

I can feel as I drive around the state, I'm starting to feel the energy, I'm starting to feel the excitement as this event is coming closer.

And I think people are starting to say, how do I, what do we need to do to make sure we're in the game?

Right?

I wanna commend the governor on reallocating some of those fan experience assets of what was initially that huge big just, you know, Liberty State Park, big activation event?

- In Jersey City, right?

- Where frankly I think New Jersey business wasn't gonna have the best opportunity to show their wares.

And now we have things like the Plaza de Fútbol that's gonna take place at American Dream where a thousand vendors are gonna have an opportunity over all those days.

They get to pick and choose their slots, right?

They're not all there at the same time, you know, but there, there's a site available where they can go and the donut maker from Main Street in South Jersey can come on up and spend an entire day up there selling their donuts and they'll probably sell 5,000 more donuts than they would've in their main street that day.

So these are real opportunities that have come onto the surface with really it, just within the last few months and it's incumbent upon all of us to make all these opportunities, you know, available.

- To Michele's point, help us on this, Kris and or Alex, we wanna put up a website, we're taping on the 19th of May so that people can find out where these smaller fan fests are.

Do you, Alex, I'll put you on the spot.

Is there a website?

- Yeah, so Steve, I would say also a couple things to add to what Michele said.

You know, we were very excited to be able to partner with the governor, choose New Jersey and EDA to announce the 34 watch parties that will be going throughout the state of New Jersey to ensure that the economic impact for the state has reached the, across all of New Jersey.

We've also put together a small business rewards program.

It's our welcome worlds rewards program where the more you shop local, the points you'll earn, which will then lead to prizes such as being, you know, coming to the World Cup final with as a guest of the host committee.

So this is going to be something where everyone, and our goal and hope is that we can drive economic impact all across the state and that people will come here and say that they want to come back.

- Yeah.

Hey, hey Kris, let's switch gears.

Can we talk about Safe passage?

I wanna talk about New Jersey Transit involved in this, but so is the Attorney General's office and others.

Safe Passage, and what the heck does this have to do, not just with people's safety, but a complicated the, the the human trafficking issue here?

- Steve, as exciting as the eight games New Jersey is gonna host is the unfortunate side of it also is these kinds of big events bring out the worst in some human beings where trafficking of human beings becomes a major problem.

So we are part of a program with, which is funded by the federal government, and you are partner in that with us for disclosure, to make sure there's awareness among the public.

I, the lens for me is a pretty straightforward, these are are fellow human beings who are being hurt for the sick pleasure of a few people and we need- - Kris, how does that, I'm sorry for interrupting Kris.

Help us understand with a concrete example, because I, on our New Jersey, the NJ Spotlight News had a feature on this and I was trying to understand, 'cause the question kept being asked, if you see something, say something or if you see what?

What would you look for?

- It's amazing.

The prototypical victim that comes to mind is a young girl who's, who is led by an older man into to places.

Right?

But while that is also true, a real life example could be a young man or an older man on a train or a bus or at a state staying a hanging out a bus stop with a person and they just doesn't seem right.

That's the moment to call the police, to alert them to a potential.

And the these are not victimless crimes, these are human beings who are being trafficked - For what purpose, Kris?

I'm again, I'm sorry for interrupting.

I'm trying to understand in what, are we talking about sex work?

- Yeah.

- Are we talking about, go ahead please.

- It is, I mean, I don't know how else to say, look as a father of two young women, I can't help but think about what I would do if one of my daughters was ever in an unfortunate situation where she's being hurt or she's being trafficked by another human being for their pleasure or to make money.

And what happens, Steve, these kinds of events bring out prostitution, bring up trafficking.

That is what the attorney general, us and frankly, you are all trying to raise awareness, see something saying something is not just about some security issues, but it's also to make sure we prevent these kinds of incidents.

- Real quick in the time we have left, let's talk security, Michele again, for business is economic.

They're looking for maximum economic benefit, et cetera, et cetera.

How does security in these incredibly scary times play into advice for businesses who are looking to bring in the most economic benefit possible, make the most money possible for themselves, their workers, employ more people, but also stay safe?

Is that part of the equation?

- Has to be.

A huge issue.

The last thing you want is not just someone to be hurt on your premises, but then the reputational risk that follows that and nobody comes back in the future.

Might as well close your doors tomorrow.

Right?

So look, this is gonna be a huge burden on our municipalities and our municipal, you know, police.

And they're only gonna have so many resources.

So incumbent upon business, if they're hosting something out of the ordinary, if they're taking advantage of expanding their property out on the street and they're gonna get some of these leniencies on liquor licenses or things like that, they should have some private security.

They should absolutely hire and protect themselves by having, you know, private security on site in order to monitor the situation.

And don't just expect that local law enforcement's gonna be able to show up because I think local law enforcement's gonna be rather busy during this time.

- Yeah, and you know, Alex, let's jump on this.

I saw the governor, literally again, we're taping on the 19th of May.

She was, I think she was in a bar, well not just hanging at a bar, she was actually in a bar talking about, help me on this if I'm wrong, Alex, changing the liquor license laws or changing the hours of operation.

And what the heck does that have to do with maximizing the impact of these games being played over in the Meadowlands?

- Well, I think what you're going to see is you've got a lot of games that are gonna be happening, you know, late at night, you know, and then sometimes into early the next morning as we try to, you know, make sure that these are global games, right?

So there are gonna be people around the world watching these games.

So some of these start times are gonna be at 10, 11, 12 o'clock.

And so I think- - In the evening?

- Yeah, yeah, yeah, for sure.

I mean, the first team USA game is nine o'clock Eastern standard time.

So you're going to have games that are gonna be starting late.

This is a global game.

There are going to be teams that are starting at, you know, midnight our time, but it's middle of the day for where their team is playing, right?

And so I think what we're looking to do, and I think what the governor is trying to make sure is that we're able to capitalize on that economic impact and the people who are going to be up watching these games late at night while again also making sure that the everyday resident isn't inconvenienced, but also trying to ensure that, as Michele said, that that economic impact is able to be captured.

- Are we talking about changing the hours of operation?

Is that what it is?

- I believe it was trying to extend the hours of operation and liquor licenses so that they could operate longer.

- Kris, now- - Also, I think expanding your footprint, right?

So let's just say, you know, you're fortunate enough to have a big parking lot and what you wanna do is you wanna put a tent out there.

Ordinarily you might not be able to extend your liquor license out, you know, to that activity.

So this is just some leniency so people can take better advantage of their environment.

- So Kris, people are enjoying themselves after the game.

Hopefully safe, secure.

Now you gotta get them where they need to go at some middle of the night time.

What challenge does that present for New Jersey Transit?

- For the games that are taking place at the MetLife Stadium, no problem because we have three hours to move the 40,000 people that we promised.

- Right.

- The rest of the system for all the fan fests, the, all the other activities, Steve, the rest of the system works as it's currently scheduled.

So we have not only the security apparatus ready to help, but we have the resources to move the people just like we do every single day.

- So people go on your site right now, Kris Kolluri, what can they find out specifically about moving around the World Cup at Meadowland, Meadowland Stadium, but also at MetLife Stadium, but also for the regular commuters?

What can they find out right now on the NJ Transit site?

- The, in fact, the New Jersey Transit app we just announced.

And not only can you buy a ticket there, but you can also get all the information from where you are and where you're going and from start to finish on bus, light rail as well as train.

- It's all there.

- It's all there.

- Easy, easy to navigate.

Kris Kolluri?

- We, we call it less clicks, more information.

- Hey, to Kris Kolluri and Alex and Michele, I wanna thank you for joining us.

Listen, I won't do commentary 'cause it's not my job on public broadcasting, but it is the 19th of May.

This is a huge event.

We hope it goes well.

We hope everyone gets where they need to get to as safely as possible, as it relates to the human trafficking issue Kris said it best.

Just imagine if it were your son or daughter or someone you cared about.

We need to move people safely.

We need to protect people and the economics of it.

It'll be all added up after.

And then we'll have everyone back on this panel talking about what was planned and what actually happened.

But I cannot thank of all of you enough, and go USA, the men's and the Women's soccer team.

I'm Steve Adubato.

FIFA, the World Cup at MetLife.

See you next time.

- [Narrator] One-On-One with Steve Adubato is a production of the Caucus Educational Corporation.

Funding has been provided by Hackensack Meridian Health.

Operating Engineers, Local 825.

PSE&G.

The New Jersey Economic Development Authority.

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.

The Turrell Fund, a foundation serving children.

United Airlines.

New Jersey Sharing Network.

And by Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey.

Promotional support provided by Meadowlands Chamber.

And by NJ.Com.

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