New Jersey Transit engineers are on strike Friday, paralyzing one of the country's busiest transport regions and leaving as many as 350,000 commuters affected as rail riders end up stranded or seeking alternative routes.
The Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen union and NJ Transit could not reach an agreement overnight and the strike began at one minute past midnight.
Here's what you need to know.
What services are affected?
All NJ Transit rail routes have stopped running, including the Metro-North west of Hudson service.
The company urges people to work from home where possible. While the network is making some limited alternative travel arrangements, these should be used for "essential purposes only.”
NJ Transit says 1,200 staff who are not covered by the union agreement will support its emergency plan, at a cost of $4 million per day.
What other services can I use?
Buses are still running but commuters should expect them to be busier than normal through Friday and into next week, despite an increased service on several key routes.
Ferries are also still in service from New Jersey to New York City with Seastreak and Waterway. Commuters can book Seastreak trips from Highlands and Atlantic Highlands to downtown Manhattan or East 35th Street as well as Bedford and Jersey City to downtown and midtown piers on the west side of Manhattan. NY Waterway offers ferries from Hoboken, Jersey City, Weehawken, Edgewater and South Amboy to downtown or midtown Manhattan.
From Monday, NJ Transit said, it has a contingency plan that accommodates "an extremely limited number of rail customers" by adding "very limited capacity" to New York City commuter bus routes near rail stations.
This includes using private transport contractors to operate bus services from key park-and-ride locations at peak weekday times, for the 70,000 daily New York City-bound passengers.
But NJ Transit says this can only carry about 20% of the normal rail passengers “as the bus system capacity can not replace the railroad.”
These park-and-ride services, operated on a first-come, first-served basis, are at:
- Secaucus Junction to Port Authority Bus Terminal.
- PNC Bank Arts Center, Holmdel, to Port Authority Bus Terminal.
- Hamilton Rail Station to Newark Penn Station PATH.
- Woodbridge Center Mall to Harrison PATH Station.
More information is available at academybus.com and the NJ Transit website.
Buses with extra capacity during the industrial action include:
- Northeast Corridor: 108, 112, 115 and 129 bus routes.
- North Jersey Coast Line: 116 and 133/135 bus routes.
- Raritan Valley Line: 112 and 113 bus routes.
- Morris & Essex Lines: 107 bus route.
- Montclair-Boonton Lines: 193 and 324 bus routes.
- Main/Bergen County Lines: 145, 163, 164 and 190 bus routes.
- Pascack Valley Line: 163, 164 and 165 bus routes.
What if I've already bought a ticket?All rail tickets and passes with an origin or destination of New York, Newark or Hoboken will be accepted at all park-and-ride services, as well as NJ Transit buses and light-rail lines.
