Negotiations between New Jersey Transit and its rail workers unions continued Friday, nearing the Sunday deadline for a strike. In the meantime, NJ Transit was preparing for the worst and warning commuters of the impending traffic suspensions.
“As we said in great detail last week, a rail stoppage would have a severe impact on travel in the entire region, severely restraining capacity on both our public transportation system and our road network which limits our ability to accommodate every displaced rail customer,” said NJ TRANSIT Interim Executive Director Dennis Martin.
In case the strike does happen, here’s what you can expect.
The two route adjustments that will affect our area most are the Atlantic City Rail Line and the Northeast Corridor.
To accommodate the Atlantic City Rail Line, NJ Transit will enhance service on the 554 bus route. The route operates between Atlantic City and Lindenwold. At Lindenwold, riders can connect with PATCO services to Philadelphia, reported NBC New York. PATCO will honor Atlantic City Rail Line tickets.
For the Northeast Corridor, NJ Transit will enhance peak period service on some routes. Those include Northeast Corridor bus routes 108, 112, 115, and 129, NBC New York reports.
NJ Transit reminds riders that bus services “cannot replicate the railroad,” and that these adjustments can only accommodate up to about 38% of riders. That’s equal to about 40,000 seats out of a typical 160,000 seats used per day.
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They are urging typical riders to carpool to work, or to work from home, if possible.
“If a rail stoppage occurs, NJ TRANSIT customers as well as people who normally drive to work should understand that this will not be a normal commute for anyone—particularly with the potential for more than 10,000 additional cars on the road per peak hour,” said Martin.
NJ Transit has set up a section of their website for the latest travel information.
For more information on New Jersey and New York routes, check out this guide.
