New Jersey Transition Essay

500 Words2 Pages

New Jersey Transit was founded in 1979 as a part of Public Transportation Act. Branching off of New Jersey’s Department of Transportation (NJDOT), it was given the power and mission to by the state government to remedy the privatized bus and rail broken transportation systems. As a result of serious financial problems, Conrail merged with several passenger railroads merged and fell under the jurisdiction of the NJDOT, operating on commuter railroad services. New Jersey Transit took over all commuter rail service in 1983. Presently, it controls all passenger and commuter rail lines in the state of New Jersey, except for some which are owned, operated and maintained by Amtrak. NJ Transit covers a service area of 5,325 square miles linking …show more content…

Some of these private buses include Academy, Coach USA, and Lakeland. Additionally, NJT is responsible for providing publicly funded transit programs for people with disabilities, senior citizens and people living in areas of the state who have no other means of transportation. Such as the NY Waterways providing a means of ferry or other services such as NJ Find A Ride. NJ’s Find a Ride is an online resource, providing information about public and accessible transportation options for those who do not own a car. The filters on the website search can match an eligible rider with a driver, factoring in costs and how a ride will be arranged. What once was the pride of New Jersey, a recipient of numerous awards and credentials. NJ Transit has since fallen astray from that reputation. Being labeled as a “national disgrace” by Governor Phil Murphy, a majority of the blame of the failed infrastructure has been placed on his predecessor, Governor Chris Christie for allowing “subsidies for the agency plunge more than 90 percent.” Instead of finding a real soluiton to the decaying tunnels, trains and tracks, NJT is left in crises needing billions of dollars in improvements. A “band aid” was slapped over the issue “by fare increases and service reductions or other cuts” a simple, temporary