New Jersey Transit Corporation, branded as NJ Transit or NJTransit and often shortened to NJT, is the state agency that owns the public transportation system that serves the U.S. state of New Jersey and portions of the states of New York and Pennsylvania. It operates buses, light rail, and commuter rail services throughout the state, connecting to major commercial and employment centers both within the state and in its two adjacent major cities, New York City and Philadelphia. In 2025, the system had an annual ridership of 221,114,200.
Covering a service area of 5,325 square miles (13,790 km2), NJT is the largest statewide public transit system and the third-largest provider of bus, rail, and light rail transit by ridership in the United States.
NJT also acts as a purchasing agency for many private operators in the state, in particular, buses to serve routes not served by the transit agency.
Contents
History
NJT was created on July 17, 1979, as an offspring of the New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT), mandated by the New Jersey Legislature to address many then-pressing transportation problems. It came into being with the enactment of the Public Transportation Act of 1979 to "acquire, operate, and contract for transportation service in the public interest." NJT originally acquired and managed a number of private bus services, one of the largest being those operated by the state's largest electric company, Public Service Electric and Gas Company. It gradually acquired most of the state's bus services. In northern New Jersey, many of the bus routes are arranged in a web. In southern New Jersey, most routes are arranged in a "spoke-and-hub" fashion, with routes emanating from Trenton, Camden, and Atlantic City.
In 1983, NJT assumed operation of all commuter rail service in New Jersey from Conrail, which had been formed in 1976 through the merging of a number of financially troubled railroads. Conrail had operated two extensive commuter railroad networks in northern New Jersey under contract to NJDOT; in turn, these lines were the successors of numerous commuter routes dating from the mid-19th century. NJT now operates every passenger and commuter rail line in the state except for Amtrak, the Port Authority Trans-Hudson (PATH), which is owned by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, the PATCO Speedline, which is owned by the Delaware River Port Authority, two SEPTA Regional Rail lines, the West Trenton Line the Trenton Line, and a handful of tourist trains in the southern and northwestern parts of New Jersey. Since inception, rail ridership has quadrupled.
In the 1990s, the rail system expanded, with new Midtown Direct service to New York City and new equipment. On October 21, 2001, it opened a new station at Newark Liberty International Airport. On December 15, 2003, it opened the Secaucus Junction transfer station, connecting its two commuter networks in northern New Jersey for the first time. The new station allowed passengers on trains to Hoboken Terminal to transfer to trains to New York Penn Station in Midtown Manhattan, saving an estimated 15 minutes over connecting with PATH trains at Hoboken. On October 31, 2005, NJT took over Clocker (NY–Philadelphia) service from Amtrak. Four new trains were added to the schedule, but cut back to Trenton.
From 2009 to 2011, NJT operated the Atlantic City Express Service (ACES) from New York Penn Station to Atlantic City Rail Terminal as a seasonal/weekend train under contract with the Casino Reinvestment Development Authority.
Governance
The governor of New Jersey appoints a thirteen-member board of directors, consisting of eleven voting and two non-voting members. The voting members consist of eight from the general public and three state officials. The two non-voting members are "recommended by labor organizations representing the plurality of employees". The governor has veto power on decisions made by the board.
In 2026, the United States Supreme Court held in Galette v. New Jersey Transit Corp. that NJ Transit is not an arm of the New Jersey government, meaning NJ Transit is not entitled to interstate sovereign immunity. Accordingly, NJ Transit may be sued by people in courts outside of New Jersey.
Current operations
NJT splits its operations into three classes: bus, light rail, and commuter rail, operated by four legal businesses: NJ Transit Bus Operations, Inc., subsidiaries NJ Transit Mercer, Inc. and NJ Transit Morris, Inc., and NJ Transit Rail Operations, Inc..
Bus
NJT Bus Operations operates 253 bus routes using 2,356 buses. Its subsidiaries NJ Transit Mercer and NJ Transit Morris operate those routes concentrated in Trenton and Monmouth and Morris counties. 696 additional buses are also leased out to several private New Jersey operators, including Coach USA, Lakeland, Transbridge Lines, and Academy.
Light rail
NJT operates three light rail systems:
Hudson–Bergen Light Rail – Three lines comprising a total of 24 stations and 20.6 miles (33.2 km) in length, running along the Hudson Waterfront from Bayonne to North Bergen in Hudson County.
Newark Light Rail – Two lines comprising a total of 17 stations and 5.3 miles (8.5 km) in length, running to and from major transportation hubs in Newark and the surrounding area.
River Line – A single line comprising a total of 21 stations and 34 miles (55 km) in length, running along the Delaware River from Trenton to Camden. The line runs diesel multiple unit trains.
Commuter rail
NJT operates thirteen commuter rail lines, two of which are operated under a contract with Metro-North Railroad.
Atlantic City Line
Bergen County Line
Main Line
Meadowlands Rail Line (for special events at the Meadowlands Sports Complex only)
Montclair-Boonton Line
Morris & Essex Lines, consisting of:
Morristown Line
Gladstone Branch
North Jersey Coast Line
Northeast Corridor Line (includes the Princeton Branch)
Pascack Valley Line (Stations in New York operated under a contract with Metro-North Railroad)
Port Jervis Line (under a contract with Metro-North Railroad)
Raritan Valley Line
Police
The New Jersey Transit Police Department (NJTPD) is the transit police agency of NJ Transit. New Jersey Transit Police operates under the authority of Chapter 27 of the NJ Revised Statutes. Title 27:25-15.1 states in part "The Transit Police Officers so appointed shall have general authority, without limitation, to exercise police powers and duties, as provided by law for police officers and law enforcement officers, in all criminal and traffic matters at all times throughout the State and, in addition, to enforce such rules and regulations as the corporation shall adopt and deem appropriate."
One of the primary responsibilities of NJ Transit Police is to provide police services and security to the hundreds of bus terminals, rail stations, light-rail stations and all other property owned, operated and leased by NJ Transit throughout the state. The Department employs approximately 250 sworn police officers.
Projects
Ongoing projects
This project will expand and restore the Northeast Corridor through a series of phases. It will create new capacity that will allow the doubling of passenger trains running under the Hudson River. The program will increase track, tunnel, bridge, and station capacity, eventually creating four mainline tracks between Newark, NJ, and Penn Station, New York, including a new, two-track Hudson River tunnel. It is being undertaken in partnership with Amtrak, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, the State of New Jersey, and the State of New York.
This project will replace the existing century-old swing-span bridge with a new, fixed-span bridge over the Hackensack River. The current bridge causes train traffic and delays due to maritime traffic, as well as malfunctions occurring from opening and closing; the new bridge will eliminate the movable span, thus improving reliability and increasing train speeds. The project is partnered with the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, NJ Transit, Amtrak, and United States Department of Transportation, with funding provided by NJ Transit, Amtrak, and the Federal Railroad Administration.
This project will entail the design and construction of a new Hudson River rail tunnel serving Penn Station, New York, and the rehabilitation and modernization of the existing North River Tunnels, which incurred serious and ongoing damage during Hurricane Sandy. The tunnel was flooded with millions of gallons of saltwater during Hurricane Sandy, causing corrosion that continues to damage the century-old tunnel. It plans to build a new tunnel, rather than close and renovate the existing tunnel, as doing so would leave only one of the North River Tunnels in service, which would cause a massive reduction in rail service. As of 2018, the final design was completed and it is being advanced through the U.S. Department of Transportation TIGER grant. The project is partnered with the FRA, PANYNJ, NJ Transit and Amtrak, all of which have provided a total funding of $86.5 million.
This project will extend the Hudson–Bergen Light Rail from North Bergen in Hudson County to Englewood in Bergen County. The extension will better meet the needs of travelers in the area, advance cost-effective transit solutions, improve regional mobility and access, reduce roadway congestion, and attract growth and development. There have been several public hearings so far, and the project has received the Supplemental Draft Environmental Impact Statement from the Environmental Protection Agency. The final EIS was expected to be completed by the end of 2019. As of December 2022, the project is still in its design phase, and NJT was given a $600K federal grant to study transit-oriented development along the proposed extension.
Proposed projects
The West Trenton Line is a proposed service connecting West Trenton Station with Newark Penn Station, connecting with the Raritan Valley Line at Bridgewater. As of 2004, NJT's estimate of the cost was $197 million. To date, no funding has been secured. Service ran on the line prior to 1983.
The West Shore Route is a proposal to reactivate passenger service on the New Jersey-New York section of the West Shore Railroad from Hoboken, NJ to West Nyack, NY. The project has been included in the NJ Transit's portion of the federally-designated Metropolitan Planning Organization, the North Jersey Transportation Planning Authority's Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) for the fiscal years of 2016–2019. The route holds perhaps the greatest promise in all of New Jersey since it travels through the heart of NJ Transit Bus Operations' Midtown "commuter shed", with four bus routes (165, 167, 168 & 177) running well beyond capacity. Issues regarding the restart of commuter rail service include:
CSX owns the trackage and uses them heavily to link the NYC area to their national network at Selkirk Yard in upstate New York.
CSX offers to allow NJ Transit use of the ROW if the agency constructed sound barriers along the entire length of track for commuter operations out of its own pocket.
A city terminal is not connected to this line, since the Weehawken & Pavonia Terminals were demolished decades ago. A loop connecting this line with the North River Tunnels into New York Penn Station where the West Shore Tracks pass under the Northeast Corridor just south of NJ Route 3 and Tonnelle Ave would directly connect this line into New York Penn Station. This configuration would provide a 25-minute travel time to New York Penn Station, but would bypass Secaucus Junction, leaving the West Shore with no transfer connection to the rest of New Jersey other than a possible transfer station on Tonnelle Ave with the Hudson Bergen Light Rail.
With these considerable technical issues, as well as no available space in New York Penn Station for West Shore Line trains, this proposal was put on hold until capacity into New York Penn Station will increase in the future.
Canceled projects
NJT intended to construct a new two-track Hudson River tunnel adjacent to the two single-track Northeast Corridor tunnels built in the early 20th century by the Pennsylvania Railroad. NJT referred to the project as Access to the Region's Core, which would have used dual-power locomotives and a new rail junction at Secaucus, allowing for a one-train ride between the Port Jervis, Main, Bergen County, Pascack Valley, and Raritan Valley lines and New York Penn Station. The Lehigh and the West Trenton extension plans would require added capacity and the ARC project would provide that capacity.
The project broke ground in June 2009. Both the Federal Transit Administration and the Port Authority made public commitments of $3 billion to the project. However, the project was suspended on October 7, 2010, due to concerns that the State of New Jersey would be solely responsible for projected $5 billion in overruns. On October 27, 2010, Governor Chris Christie made a final decision to cancel the project. Amtrak later unveiled the Gateway Project, which addresses some of the issues ARC was meant to resolve.
Planned to connect Downtown Newark and Elizabeth via Newark Liberty International Airport, NJT is no longer pursuing the Newark–Elizabeth Rail Link. The airport has a monorail link to NJT's Northeast Corridor Line and Amtrak's Northeast Corridor, both of which run to both Newark and Elizabeth.
Incidents
In December 1985, a train crashed into a concrete bumper in Hoboken Terminal, injuring 54 people. The cause was a lubricant that was applied onto the tracks to test the train wheels.
On February 9, 1996, NJ Transit Bergen County Line train 1254 collided nearly head-on with Main Line train 1107 near Secaucus. Both trains' engineers and a passenger were killed. The collision was caused when the eastbound train ran a red signal due to the unreported color blindness of the engineer of train 1254.
On July 14, 2003, a Northeast Corridor train derailed just east of the Portal Bridge in Secaucus during the morning rush hour disrupting service on the Northeast Corridor for nearly 12 hours. Amtrak service was terminated at Newark during this time. All of NJ Transit's Northeast Corridor, North Jersey Coast and Morris and Essex trains were diverted to Hoboken Terminal. The cause of the derailment was a lost wheel on one of the Arrow III cars causing NJ Transit to temporarily take all 230 Arrow III cars out of service for inspection. They were all deemed safe and returned to service days later.
On February 21, 2007, a Bergen County Line train suffered a minor derailment after passing over an improperly repaired switch at Ridgewood Junction.
On the morning of September 29, 2016, a Pascack Valley Line train failed to slow down as it approached Hoboken Terminal and crashed into the passenger concourse. One person died, with around 100 people being injured.
On August 19, 2016, two New Jersey Transit buses collided in Newark on Broad St & Raymond Blvd during the morning commute. Bus 5612, operating on route no. 59 with no passengers, ran a red light, colliding with bus 5784, running was on route 13, which was crossing the road safely. Two people died and 18 were injured in the crash. The driver of 5612 died at the scene. A passenger onboard bus 5784 was also pronounced dead at the scene.
On the morning of December 14, 2023, a Texas Longhorn bull wandered onto the train tracks at Newark Penn Station. Onlookers notified officials, leading to paused service and train delays of up to 45 minutes. Newark Police Emergency Services and the Port Authority Police Department contained the animal, later named Ricardo after one of the police officers who helped corral him to safety. On December 19, 2023, NJ Transit released an official Ricardo the Bull 6-inch plushie to commemorate the incident. The plushie was available for pre-order on the NJ Transit Shoppe for $20 and sold out shortly after release. A portion of the proceeds for the plushie would go Skylands Animal Sanctuary & Rescue in Sussex County, where Ricardo was transported after the incident.