Dangerous jitneys

The NY Times has an article on the risk of unregulated jitneys in North Jersey.

Sounds like that various governmental agencies may be taking some actions about it though.

Commuter Parking Advisory Committee

-----------------------

New Jersey Jitney Drivers Squeezed Between Competition and Demands for More Safety

WEST NEW YORK, N.J. — From behind the wheel of his 21-seat minibus, Joseph Cruz sees things with exceptional clarity. He has divided the world — at least, the helter-skelter world of commercial minibuses in which he has made his living for 11 years — into two camps: the safe drivers and everyone else. .... 

Middlesex County #1 in NJ in fatal auto accidents

The NJ State Police reports that Middlesex County is #1 in NJ for fatal automobile accidents so far in 2013.

Here is link to the full article about it.

Here is the link also: http://www.nj.com/monmouth/index.ssf/2013/07/fatal_crashes_down_slightly_in_monmouth_county_this_year.html

New line from NY to Boston

Interesting article regarding a NY bus entrepeneur.

First the MTA cancels a commuter bus line and they won't let him operate it himself leaving commuters in the lurch.

Then he starts a NY to Boston bus line, they won't let him in either of the two NY bus terminals and then they fight him regarding curb side service too.

Isn't NY a wonderful place?

link to article

Sandy flooding

Link to video of PATH flooding from Sandy:

link to video

Commuter Parking Advisory Committee

Bus vs train commuters to NY

Interesting article regarding NJ Transit and the Sandy aftermath.

We particularly found this paragraph interesting given how much more attention and money train service gets to New York than does bus service:

NJ Transit facilities suffered damage from the storm. Several rail lines are still not back to 100 percent. Durso said NJ Transit typically has 45,000 customers traveling into and out of New York Penn Station, and 66,000 bus customers traveling into and out of the Port Authority Bus Terminal each day. Another 34,000 commute to the Port Authority on private carriers, Durso said.

As we all know, we  badly need bus related improvements too such as bus parking and loading facilities, including downtown but trains seem to get far more resources than do buses despite the fact that there are far more bus commuters than train commuters.

Commuter Parking Advisory Committee

----------

Sandy soaked transit agency in more ways than one

Monday January 28, 2013, 8:42 AM

BY KAREN ROUSE

STAFF WRITER

The Record

Print | E-mail

The walloping that NJ Transit took from superstorm Sandy wasn't limited to trains and tracks. The state's mass transit agency also suffered at the fare box, losing more than $18 million in revenue.
The loss was compounded by NJ Transit's having to pay more than $9 million to various private companies that picked up the slack in the weeks after the storm to move people around the region.

link to rest of article

Wall Street Journal: problems restoring PATH service

Wall Street Journal article about problems restoring PATH service:

The pink, rectangular icon on the computer screen representing the progress of PATH train 5780 blinked, as the cars rolled out on the westbound tracks from the World Trade Center station. Then, just at the mouth of the tunnel under the Hudson River, the pink rectangle disappeared.

To dispatchers in Lower Manhattan, that is the most obvious sign that all is still not well with PATH, a vital link for New Jersey commuters that still isn't back to full operation nearly three months after superstorm Sandy.

On one section of the system, restoring even limited service has required workers to reach back in time, using a system to move trains that dates to the age of the telegraph.

link to rest of article

Ferry traffic post Sandy

The Wall Street Journal has published an article regarding increased ferry commuting post Sandy, especially with the PATH problems.

It remains to be seen if improved ferry service could possibly help address the Pulaski Skyway construction issue to downtown starting  in 2014.

link to article