Transportation-wise, Hudson County, NJ is a complicated place. The network of trains, buses, ferries, and light rail is fragmented into many different operators. In addition to just NJ Transit and the PATH, there are over 30 different transit providers in the area: public, private, and quasi-public.
This creates a lot of difficulties and intricacies for transit providers and passengers, which I’ll go into more after the jump
State/regional transit agencies:
•NJ Transit bus, rail, and light rail
•MTA bus from Bayonne to Staten Island
•Port Authority of New York and New Jersey (PATH)
•Hudson Transportation Management Association shuttle bus from Kearney to Harrison PATH station
•Meadowlink shuttles in Harrison, Kearney, and Secaucus
Municipal:
•City of Hoboken HOP shuttles
•Town of Weehawken ferry shuttles
•Town of Secaucus train station shuttle
Scheduled private operators:
•New York Waterway ferries and buses
•Seastreak ferries from Jersey City to Monmouth County
•Liberty Landing ferry
•A&C Bus Corporation in Jersey City
•Broadway Bus in Bayonne
•Decamp Bus Lines in Harrison, Kearny, Secaucus
•Academy Bus Lines from Central NJ to Jersey City
•Carefree Bus Lines on Belleville Turnpike, on the border between Kearny and North Arlington
Institutional transit providers:
•Stevens Institute of Technology shuttles
•Saint Peter’s College shuttle to Journal Square
•NJCU shuttles
•Rutgers Newark shuttles in Harrison and Kearny
Jitneys:
•Spanish Transportation and affiliates to Paterson and New York
•Taino Express
•Community Lines on Kennedy Boulevard and River Road
•Sphinx Transportation on Boulevard East
•Fuji Express on Boulevard East
This is just one county alone. Now you see why it’s been so hard to create a comprehensive transit map of New Jersey- something that has never been done.
Because there are so many transit operators, it can be very hard for individuals to figure out exactly what their transit options are. For example, someone who regularly takes the Stevens shuttle in Hoboken might not know that the Hoboken HOP shuttles also service the same area.
To my knowledge, there isn’t a single place where all of the route and schedule information for these 30+ transit providers are compiled.
Having 30+ transit operators also means that transfers and fare integration are never guaranteed. While NJT bus passes are accepted on A&C Bus, usually transit agencies and companies don’t honor each other’s passes or transfer slips.
Compare this to New York City, where virtually the entire transit system is unified, and you can get anywhere for $2.75.
