NJ Transit Struggles, Leaving Riders Stranded

Writing in Curbed, Nolan Hicks takes a deep dive into New Jersey Transit’s troubled recent history, delving into the reasons why the agency has, in some cases, left passengers stranded in trains for hours — even after raising fares by 15 percent.

According to Hicks, “Two crises are unfolding simultaneously at NJ Transit.” The first, “mostly outside of NJT’s control,” is Amtrak’s failure to modernize the power grid in the Northeast Corridor, much of which NJT shares.

The second crisis is NJ Transit’s lack of resources and subsequent service cuts, with 3,400 trains canceled between January and August of this year. “Even if you subtract those that NJ Transit can pin on Amtrak, the number still stands at more than 2,300, up year-over-year by 800.”

The agency blames service interruptions on an aging fleet, but it does far less maintenance on its trains than comparable systems. Meanwhile, NJT has not added modern innovations such as elevated platforms for faster and easier boarding or electric propulsion systems that have helped systems like New York City’s MTA speed up service and reduce the time trains stop at stations. Multiple governors have promised to fund the system, only to pull back on those goals. According to Hicks, “In 2004, Trenton allocated $618 million for major projects, modernization and improvements at NJ Transit, or approximately $1 billion in today’s money. In 2024, Murphy and lawmakers allocated just $760 million for the fifth year in a row — a shortchange that adds up to $2.4 billion per decade.”