"It'll be weeks instead of months," said Stephen Kingsberry, Acting General Manager/Director of PATH.
About 10 million gallons of water flooded PATH system during the storm, which shut down the entire system for more than a week. Thousands of those gallons ended up in the Hoboken station, the only remaining station still closed.
The tracks under the station were flooded with eight feet of water, which poured in through the elevators. In one case, the surging water shattered the elevator's glass.
CLICK HERE to see amazing video of the flooding.
Officials say it took about a week to get all the water out, and crews have been working around the clock to test switches, signals and cables.
The breaker rooms that house all the electrical wires for the tunnels were also severely flooded and are still being repaired. The pumps are also being replaced.
"All equipment was damaged," Kingsberry said.
Stairways to the station were replaced, as well as all the turnstiles and the track signal system.
Some of the equipment is 80 years old. The Hoboken station itself dates back more than 100 years and has flooded before, though not as seriously.
The total damage to the PATH system is about $300 million, according to Kingsberry. He says the Port Authority is working with FEMA to pay for the damage.
The damage to the system was worse than what was sustained during the September 11th attacks.
If it had been a normal storm, Kingsberry says the Port Authority would have been able to handle it.
"It was larger than anybody ever expected," he said.
PATH service has been restored from Newark and Jersey City into Manhattan in recent weeks. Thousands of commuters from Hoboken have had to use ferries and buses to get across the Hudson.
CLICK HERE to see a tour of the Hoboken PATH station weeks after Hurricane Sandy.
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