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rewardiflost t1_ja8uj5l wrote

Well, there are some transit lines in several parts of the state. But it is not great coverage, it doesn't always work overnight, and it may not even be straightforward to get between two points without traveling to a hub like Newark or Hoboken first.

NJ Transit is the system. Here's the train and light rail line maps

Here's a list of bus routes with links in the reference section to unofficial bus maps and the NJ Transit query system.

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Rude-Bison-2050 t1_ja8vfhu wrote

that is super dependent on where but generally the closer you are to NYC/PHI, the more options you will have.

the most dense parts of the states (in particular, the north east heading to central east parts) are well covered by train, light rail, and bus. I have lived in passaic, essex, and bergen counties, the majority of cities/towns there will have very good coverage.

if you go to the more rural parts in sussex or south in the pinelands, your options drop quickly. Do not live in rural NJ if you do not have a car.

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TheAdamist t1_ja8vov5 wrote

Not really, its mainly for commuters http://www.dougandadrienne.info/njbus/ has all the bus routes on a couple regional maps, youll see that mass transit is setup to get you to/from new york city, Philadelphia, and Atlantic city and their surrounding suburbs.

If you pick the right town you can mostly get away without a car.

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ProfessorKnifey t1_ja8vvj7 wrote

Jersey is mostly set up in a way that a car is needed. Smaller towns usually don’t have a great public transit system and sidewalks are few and far in between.

NJ Transit is pretty great for getting across the state and into NY/PA

Do your research before moving!

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pepstein t1_ja8wphi wrote

lots more public transportation than other states but still not amazing, the further north in NJ you are the more dense it is and easier to get around without a car

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BackInNJAgain t1_ja8xatw wrote

Somewhat, but most of the transit is centered on getting people to and from Newark, New York City and Philadelphia vs. from one part of the state to another.

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peter-doubt t1_ja8xet1 wrote

It helps to know your major destinations... Home & office. Beware residences close to transit will cost more. Know that NJT is trying to make bicycles a useful extension to your ride (but not every train is accommodating)

Spent yesterday on a train with a lifelong resident.. he had no clue how to read the departure board at a glance! The rail routes/ map/ schedules and departure boards are color coded.

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sutisuc t1_ja90eis wrote

The usefulness and existence of it very much depends on where in the state you’d be moving to

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ct0 t1_ja90vux wrote

more or less

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Funny_Breadfruit_413 t1_ja91wzs wrote

Jersey isn't commuter friendly unless you're planning on working in the city (NYC or Philadelphia). Other than that you will be a car owner in under 6 months.

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ddhboy t1_ja94dxv wrote

So yes, in that NJ Transit operates* trains and busses throughout the state.

The transit routes are more or less designed around commuting to metropolitan area centers. What that means in practice is that for most of NJ, transit is oriented towards commuting to NYC or Philadelphia, as opposed to being able to get around town with reliable frequencies. So if you work in NYC, Philly, or Newark, you might not need a car to get there. When you start talking about getting around your immediate area, you'll probably need a car unless you're in one of NJ's cities. Even then, mass transit coverage isn't that good or reliable when your destination remain within the state.

* NJ Transit is also kind of a franchise with various operations being run by private companies contracted with the state. This sometimes becomes a point of conflict with the buses, with the private operators want to reduce frequency.

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jackietreehorn313 t1_ja97h3h wrote

NJTransit stands for North Jersey Transit. If you don’t have a car, I wouldn’t live outside the Newark-Jersey City area.

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Significant_Limit_68 t1_ja9805d wrote

Not at all. Unless you’re in Paterson or Newark.If you live in NJ, you need a car.

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Fragrant_Butthole t1_ja99g44 wrote

no this is very much not true for the majority of the state. You can easily get away without a car in most parts of Hoboken, jersey city, etc but but outside the NY metro area it will be difficult if not impossible without a car.

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specialgravity t1_ja9c1ey wrote

Hoboken and JC are really the only walkable cities I can think of, even then it all depends on where in those cities you live. You'll end up needing a car pretty much everywhere here unfortunately. Relying 100% on public transportation is no fun.

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housespecialdelight t1_ja9e0zw wrote

Depends where you work. Outside of NY some towns people do not have a car like Jersey City and Hoboken. Fairly easy to commute to NY if you were there. You can get other places in NJ through train or bus. I lived in Hoboken and in the summer took a train to the beach. You can rent a car too. You can get to places through transit but be prepared for transfers. Again it all really depends where you think you will get a job.

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cerialthriller t1_ja9ftr0 wrote

If by statewide you mean just Camden county and north then maybe

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skittleleedee t1_ja9i91q wrote

Want to hear a joke?

NJ Public Transportation.

Though for real, technically it's doable especially to mix and match trains, buses, and the occasional uber. But it gets really expensive fast depending where you need to go.

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yuriydee t1_ja9nxuv wrote

Aside from living in Jersey City or Hoboken, you WILL need a car in majority of other places. If not for commuting but for doing regular things like going to grocery store and what not.

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AnNJgal t1_ja9pm45 wrote

You'll need to live by a good train line, so you'll have to spend some money on rent. Rutherford, Clifton, Bloomfield, etc.

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valeofraritan t1_ja9x5zp wrote

New Jersey has public transit, but not statewide. Mostly limited to getting to and from NYC, NYC to Shore Points, Philly from some places in Southern New Jersey.

Don't move to Somerset County, Hunterdon County, Morris County, Warren County, Sussex County, Most of Passaic County, Western portions of Union County next to Somerset County. Not too sure about anything south of Princeton but the less population, the less transit. The more farms, the less transit are pretty good rules of thumb.

Where there are county systems, some are decent, most aren't. All have big limitations in terms of when they run. You can't use Somerset's for work because it doesn't run on any type of holiday.

Hunterdon's is far better than Somerset's, but is still limited, doesn't run on Sundays. Somerset concentratres on getting people to and from Dialysis, really.

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pathfinderNJ t1_ja9x753 wrote

It is very easy to commute to NYC and Philly from many surrounding suburbs, some of which are older main street type towns with shopping and food and where you could easily get away without a car. The suburbs are a whole different story. You would mostly need a car to do things. So the answer is there is a lot of mass transit and more coming, but it doesn't get you everywhere very easily.

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reditme1000 t1_jaafj6e wrote

South Jersey does NOT have good public transit

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Administrative_Elk66 t1_jab2slf wrote

NJ is tough because even if you live somewhere with a frequent train line, you won't necessarily be able to walk/cycle to a grocery store, and there's no local bus to take you around town. Or you live somewhere cute and walkable , but the weekend train only runs every 2 hours. You have to decide what's manageable for you and start there.

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TheBravadoBoy t1_jab485l wrote

Replying to thebruns (#2,084,023)

Living without a car doesn’t mean just having one bus route in town if your office building is off a highway, or if you need to take a long bus ride or cross dangerous intersections for every grocery or laundry haul

While we do have better transit than most states, most of NJ still isn’t very livable without a car, at least compared to just living in a decent neighborhood in a dense major city

Their best bet is probably looking in Hudson county first since it’s the highest density and has better walkability in most parts

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TheBravadoBoy t1_jab6mcm wrote

Replying to thebruns (#2,089,415)

That would be surprising if I thought there were literally zero other places in NJ you could live without a car, which I don’t…

Meanwhile you’re implying that OP should look at any town with any amount of public transit whatsoever…

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thebruns t1_jab71rc wrote

Replying to TheBravadoBoy (#2,090,030)

>Meanwhile you’re implying that OP should look at any town with any amount of public transit whatsoever…

Where did I say this?

You might find you have a better time on reddit if you dont argue with things that were never said.

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