The (NJ Transit) is a statewide
Public Transportation system serving the
U.S. State of
New Jersey . It operates bus,
Light Rail , and
Commuter Rail services throughout the state, notably connecting to major commercial and employment centers both within the state and in the adjacent cities of
New York and
Philadelphia . All but one of NJ Transit's commuter trains feed into New York's
Penn Station in
Midtown Manhattan or
Hoboken Terminal in
Hoboken, New Jersey . The exception is the
Atlantic City Line , which terminates at
30th Street Station in Philadelphia. Most NJTransit commuter buses go to Manhattan's
Port Authority Bus Terminal and to Philadelphia's Greyhound Bus Terminal.
NJ Transit, founded in 1979, was an offspring of the
New Jersey Department Of Transportation (NJDOT), mandated by the state government to address the many transportation issues that had developed at the time. NJ Transit came into being with the passage of the Public Transportation Act of 1979 to "acquire, operate and contract for transportation service in the public interest." NJ Transit originally acquired and managed a number of private bus services.
Conrail (or Consolidated Rail Corporation) had been formed in 1976 through the merging of a number of financially troubled passenger railroads, and operated commuter railroad service under contract from the NJDOT.
In 1983, NJ Transit assumed operation of all commuter rail service in New Jersey from Conrail. It now operates every passenger and commuter rail line in the state except for
Amtrak ; the
Port Authority Trans-Hudson (PATH), which is owned by the
Port Authority Of New York And New Jersey ; the
PATCO Hi-Speedline, which is owned by the
Delaware River Port Authority ; and a handful of tourist trains in the southern and northwestern parts of New Jersey. New Jersey Transit also runs most of the state's bus lines, with many of its bus routes serving the older, urbanized areas of Northeast New Jersey, along with a cluster of lines based in Trenton.
In the 1990s, the system expanded, with new
MidTOWN DIRECT service to
New York City and new equipment. On
October 21 ,
2001 it opened a new station at
Newark International Airport . On
December 15 ,
2003 , NJ Transit opened the
Secaucus Junction transfer station, connecting two major portions of the system, allowing passengers on Hoboken-bound trains to switch trains to get to
Midtown Manhattan more conveniently. The transfer saves passengers headed into Midtown Manhattan an estimated 15 minutes of travel time.
On
October 31 ,
2005 , NJT took over
Clocker (NY-Philadelphia) service from
Amtrak . Four new trains were added to the schedule, but service was cut back to
Trenton .
NJ Transit is preparing to construct a new two-track Hudson River tunnel adjacent to the two existing single-track tunnels (built in the early 20th century) by the
Pennsylvania Railroad . The tunnels are on the Northeast Corridor. NJ Transit is billing this project as THE Tunnel or
Trans-Hudson Express Tunnel , which using Dual-Mode Locomotives will allow for the first time a one-seat ride between the
Port Jervis ,
Main ,
Bergen County ,
Pascack Valley , and
Raritan Valley lines and Penn Station New York.
NJ Transit operates a statewide network of buses. There are three subdivisions of bus operations:
- Transit (Local service between two points, such as the #1 bus between Newark & Jersey City.)
- Short Distance Suburban (Mostly interstate service between New York City/Philadelphia and close points in New Jersey. Such as Routes 123-Union City, 125-Journal Square,126-Hoboken. Some routes feed Newark or Jersey City such as the 64-Lakewood, 65-Somerville, 68-New Brunswick, and 75-Butler.
- Longer Distance Suburban (Routes covering longer distances operating Express for several miles along the route. Some of these routes use over-the-road coaches with restrooms due to trip times. Most restroom equipped-coaches are used on the 319 line and long-distance routes based out of Atlantic City.)
NJ Transit maintains a fleet of 2,027 buses and 236 bus routes. Bus fares are based on distance.
NJ Transit operates 3 light rail lines:
See Also: NJ Transit Rail Operations
NJ Transit has 11 commuter rail lines:
