NJ Transit Set to Keep Fares Steady for the Next Year, Murphy Says

(Bloomberg) -- New Jersey Transit bus and rail riders will catch a break on fares with no increases planned for the next year, Governor Phil Murphy said.

The nation's largest statewide commuter transportation provider, buffeted by low rider revenue during the pandemic, is putting off higher fares in part because of federal Covid-19 aid totaling at least $4.25 billion. The Metropolitan Transportation Authority, also awash in grants, last month postponed raising New York City subway and bus fares, though it will reconsider in several months.

NJ Transit, a key link to New York City jobs, hasn't increased rider fees for all of Murphy's tenure, starting in January 2018. There will be no fare hikes “at least through the first half of 2023,” Murphy said during a Monday briefing.

“Holding the line on fares is part of the stronger, fairer and more affordable New Jersey,” said Murphy, invoking a campaign theme.

Still, higher fares are a distinct threat in the latter part of 2023, as New York metropolitan-area employers acknowledge that at least partial work-from-home schedules will outlast the pandemic, making for fewer commuters.

Also, transit advocates remain critical of stalled efforts for further change at NJ Transit. In January, a broad bill failed to move forward through the legislature, killing an effort to require an independent customer-advocate office, require documents to be available to board members and mandate circulation of strategic and capital plans to the board prior to other agencies.

Murphy, a Democrat who started his second term in January, has vowed to return NJ Transit to its onetime standing as a top-notch transportation agency, after years of budget cuts undermined safety, reliability and on-time performance.

The budget he will introduce next week will include money for wireless connectivity aboard all NJ Transit buses, he said. Also set to begin in the second quarter is Portal North Bridge construction over the Hackensack River in Secaucus, replacing a trouble-prone century-old swing bridge. Multiple rail stations also are getting upgrades.

Murphy's administration has graduated 127 train engineers, re-topping ranks that had dwindled to such a degree that call-outs left scarce personnel to cover, leading to service delays. NJ Transit also met a federal deadline for an emergency braking system, overhauled maintenance and improved rider communications.

For January, rail on-time performance was 93% and for buses, 96%, Murphy said. Though the agency had better rail times prior to the pandemic, Murphy said the figures were remarkable because NJ Transit workers were greatly affected by Covid-19.

Ridership is about 40% of pre-Covid levels for trains and about 60% for buses.