Hillsdale NJ, Senate President Steve Sweeney today sharply criticized NJ Transit’s leadership for blaming a continuing shortage of engineers for the cancellation of two Pascack Valley Line express trains that led Metro-North to withhold contracted payments for the service from the fiscally strapped agency.
Secaucus NJ, The New Jersey Transit Police have arrested Kidada Ferguson, 19, of Manhattan, N.Y. at the Frank R. Lautenberg Secaucus Junction Train Station.
On Wednesday, September 25th, at 12:48 a.m. Officer Victor Ortiz responded to a report of an unruly passenger on board train #6201. During the investigation, Kidada Ferguson struck Officer Ortiz in the face, spit on him and assaulted a train crew member.
Newark NJ, On Monday, August 26, the MTV Video Music Awards is being hosted at the Prudential Center in Newark, NJ—its first time ever in New Jersey. Due to the traffic congestion resulting from this event, we encourage those traveling in the area to allow for extra time and, if you are not attending the event, plan alternate routes. (Road closure info below)
If your commute involves bus: NJ TRANSIT bus service throughout Newark will be subject to delays and detours due to the event. There is the potential for gridlock traffic conditions Monday.
Trenton NJ, Senate Majority Leader Loretta Weinberg (D-Bergen) today endorsed the submission of a new $11.3 billion Gateway Tunnel plan that for the first time does not rely on tolls on NJ Transit trains to pay for construction costs.
“We made it clear during negotiations over the new Gateway Commission bill that it was the bipartisan intent of the New Jersey Legislature that the new tunnels not be financed out of NJ Transit’s operating budget or on the backs of NJ Transit riders,” Senator Weinberg said. “We are pleased that that the Governors and the current Gateway Commission heard us loud and clear, and that this year’s application for federal funding – unlike past years – does not call for tolls on NJ Transit trains to pay for construction.”
Ridgewood NJ, As the third largest transit system in the country, New jersey Transit has pledged to improve the customer experience. According to their website that means they must continually invest in people, infrastructure and communications.
Commuters note a mixed bag of results .While train service continues to have Penn Station ,and 100 year old tunnel issues ,bus service has also had it own problems with construction on 495 and problems on the Hudson crossings.
Ridgewood NJ, NJ TRANSIT is delivering on its commitment to improving the customer experience across its rail, bus and light rail systems with the creation of the first Customer Advocate & Chief Customer Experience Officer in the agency’s 40-year history.
NJ TRANSIT has named transportation advocate and customer experience leader Stewart Mader to fill the role. The position is dedicated to monitoring and improving the customer experience statewide at every customer touchpoint.
“As NJ TRANSIT continues to rebuild itself as a world-class mass transit agency, restoring safety and reliability to the thousands of commuters who use its service daily, the voices of its riders must be heard,” said Governor Philip Murphy. “I applaud NJ TRANSIT’s leadership for prioritizing those voices, and putting customer service at the forefront of its operations by selecting Stewart Mader as the agency’s first Customer Advocate and Chief Customer Experience Officer, who will use his deep experience advocating for mass-transit in our region to monitor customer experience and feedback, and integrate the unique needs of commuters into the agency’s decision making process.”
Ridgewood NJ, All 14 Assistant Conductors that enrolled in NJ TRANSIT’S pilot conductor-to-engineer training program have successfully completed classroom instruction and testing. The first class of its kind at NJ TRANSIT, 100% of the Assistant Conductors will be moving onto phase two to begin on-the-job training in the field.
“This class of Assistant Conductors did an incredible job of learning an immense amount of material,’’ said NJ TRANSIT Executive Director Kevin Corbett. “The hard work and dedication this class has shown is evident by their impressive success rate. I wish them well on the second phase of their training and look forward to having them operating their own trains in revenue service before the end of this year.”
Ridgewood NJ, Following yet another day of major service disruptions for commuters who rely on New Jersey Transit trains to get to work, Senate Republican Leader Tom Kean called for the agency to take immediate action to prevent future problems.
Newark NJ, A New Jersey Transit Police Officer on foot patrol in Newark is credited with arresting a man wanted for the murder of a South Jersey resident.
Lonnie Arrington, 48, of Newark, was arrested by Officer Michael Hooks on Tuesday, October 16 in the bus lanes at Newark Penn Station.
Ridgewood NJ, NJ TRANSIT debuted its new accelerated Locomotive Engineer Training class this week, with 14 Assistant Conductors learning how to become rail engineers, fulfilling the agency’s commitment to speed up the training of Locomotive Engineers.
Hoboken NJ, NJ TRANSIT is inviting customers to interact with senior management and operations personnel at the latest “We Are Listening” forum at Hoboken Terminal Thursday, October 11th from 4:30-6:30 p.m.
Trenton NJ, Governor Phil Murphy today revealed the findings of a comprehensive strategic, financial and operational assessment of NJ TRANSIT. This report assesses the challenges and possible improvements to NJ TRANSIT pursuant to Executive Order 5 signed by Governor Murphy. The audit, conducted by The North Highland Company, assessed the following major areas: organizational structure, operating and capital funding sources, personnel recruitment, procurement, and customer experience.
Ridgewood NJ, NJ TRANSIT is continuing to work closely with Amtrak and the Federal Railroad Administration on the investigation into Friday night’s incident in the Hudson River Tunnels. At NJ TRANSIT, the safety of our commuters and employees remains our highest priority. We assure our customers that, once the Amtrak repairs are complete and all the necessary safety inspections are made, rail service through the tunnels will remain completely safe.
Trenton NJ, Assemblywoman Holly Schepisi’s legislation assisting NJ Transit accident victims was signed into law today by the governor. Tommy’s Law (A3904) requires the state to promptly provide accident victims and their families with information regarding the incident. Senator Cardinale sponsored the bill in the Senate.
Ridgewood NJ, To accommodate the lane closures necessary as part of the New Jersey Department of Transportation’s (NJDOT) rehabilitation of the Route 495 Bridge over Routes 1&9 and Paterson Plank Road in North Bergen, several NJ TRANSIT local bus routes will require detours.
The Exclusive Bus Lane (XBL) will be maintained weekday mornings (6 a.m. – 10 a.m.) throughout the construction.
Beginning Friday night, August 10, the 31st Street ramp from Kennedy Boulevard to Route 495 westbound will be closed with traffic detoured onto Paterson Plank Road, directly affecting NJ TRANSIT’s local service on 18 bus routes requiring detours in the afternoon and at night. A week later, on Friday, August 17, one lane of Route 495 in each direction will be closed, limiting the roadway capacity and causing severe congestion. The construction requiring detours is anticipated to last approximately two and a half years.
· Buses will operate their regular routing westbound along 31st Street through Union City the entire span of the day.
· All current Union City bus stops on 31st Street will be served, including both Bergenline Avenue and Kennedy Boulevard.
· Between 6 a.m. and 1 p.m. on weekdays, all NJ TRANSIT Buses using the 31st Street ramp will follow regular routes and continue to have access to Route 495 westbound.
· All buses between 1 p.m. and 6 a.m. the next morning will continue to use the 31st Street ramp but will be detoured onto Paterson Plank Road.
· Delays through Union City are anticipated due to increased traffic volume, and customers should plan accordingly for these delays.
Buses may encounter conditions that result in significant delays in the outbound direction during both the morning and evening peak periods.
AFFECTED BUS ROUTES
The following bus routes will be detoured between 1 p.m. and 6 a.m. daily during construction:
No. 87 Jersey City-Hoboken
No. 107 South Orange-New York
No. 108 Newark-New York
No. 111 New York-IKEA-Jersey Gardens
No. 124 Secaucus-New York
No. 127S Ridgefield-Union City-New York
No. 129 Secaucus-Union City-New York
No. 144 Elmwood Park-Hackensack-New York
No. 160 Elmwood Park-Wallington-New York
No. 161 Paterson-Passaic-New York
No. 163 Ridgewood-New York
No. 167 Harrington Park-Teaneck-New York
No. 190X Paterson-Rutherford-New York
No. 190 (local) Paterson-Rutherford-New York
No. 191 Willowbrook-Montclair-New York
No. 192 Clifton-New York
No. 195 Willowbrook-Cedar Grove-New York
No. 199 Clifton-Lyndhurst-New York
The following bus routes do not require a detour, but are expected to be impacted by delays due to increased traffic congestion:
No. 83 Hackensack-Jersey City-Journal Square
No. 85 Mill Creek-Harmon Meadow-Hoboken
No. 127 (regular) Ridgefield-Union City-New York
No. 320 Mill Creek-North Bergen Park & Ride-New York (a detour will be necessary in later stages and information will be provided in advance)