Murphy plans greater state investment in NJ Transit

Planned improvements to New Jersey Transit are expected to bring some relief to hundreds of thousands of frustrated bus riders.

The agency is recruiting 40 more bus drivers and taking other steps to minimize bus delays, said Kevin Corbett,   NJ Transit’s executive director.

“These enhancements will involve the adjustment of running times along with some additional buses with the additional bus drivers needed to provide bus stop arrivals more in sync with the actual time points on the schedule,” he said Monday.

Additional capacity to relieve overcrowding is planned for specific bus routes in Bergen, Hudson, and Union — counties experiencing the fastest growing ridership.

State Senate Transportation Committee Chairman Patrick Diegnan said the planned improvements are needed.

“This is not an amenity,” said Diegnan, D-Middlesex. “This is a necessity. This is now people get to work. This is how families survive … taking buses.”

Getting the mass transit system working again for commuters is a high priority, said Gov. Phil Murphy.

“We want commuters to leave their cars at home and rely upon mass transit, both our trains and our buses,” he said. “But we can’t realistically expect them to do so unless they know NJ Transit can get them where they need to be, reliably and on time.”

It will take years of committed investments to reverse damage caused by neglect and mismanagement, Murphy said.