Transportation Options During Rail Repairs

By George N. Saliba, Managing Editor On Jul 10, 2017

As Amtrak today began making substantial repairs to its regional rail tracks at New York Penn Station, thousands of New Jersey commuters awoke to fundamental changes regarding how they can use mass transit to enter or exit New York City, in what has been unofficially dubbed “the summer of hell.” Since the track repairs are at Penn Station, incoming New Jersey travelers are therefore being diverted around the terminus, whether they choose to head to Hoboken Terminal, Newark Penn Station, drive across bridges or through tunnels, ride a bus, take the New York Waterway ferry, or – for those who live just west of the Hudson River – bicycle across the George Washington Bridge. All of these options may be more congested, however, because they are absorbing thousands of customers who wouldn’t ordinarily use them.

While NJ Transit had already been alerting its customers to the disruption in service in what NJ TRANSIT Executive Director Steve Santoro termed an “all-hands-on-deck effort to communicate with our customers,” many commuters remain unsure regarding their best options.

NJ TRANSIT’s website is a key resource detailing all options for NJ TRANSIT riders, with NJ TRANSIT notably writing, “All Morris & Essex Lines (M&E) customers should check the new schedules for train times and station stops as changes have been made.” Perhaps surprisingly, early risers on the Morris & Essex Line can still catch a direct ride into New York Penn Station at some stations, to arrive before 6:58 a.m. In certain cases, they can also travel directly to Penn Station from Secaucus Junction (riders can check the more detailed schedule, here).

Meanwhile, PATH, New York Waterway Ferry and NJ TRANSIT 126 Bus Route (to and from the Port Authority Bus Terminal), are detailed here.

While commuters may be temporarily inconvenienced, the good news is that the repairs are slated to be completed by September 1 – and that they are necessary for smooth rail operation.

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