New Jersey
Advocates Demand New Jersey Agencies Cough Up Congestion Pricing Data – Streetsblog New York City
Open your hearts and open your data.
NJT and the Port Authority need to cough up some actually useful post-congestion pricing travel data so the public has a full picture of the new toll’s impact on the region, advocates on both sides of the Hudson River said on Thursday.
In a pair of letters sent to the leadership of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey and NJ Transit, the so-called “Sunshine Coalition” of more than 30 organizations from both the Garden State and Empire State asked agencies under control or partial control of Gridlock Gov. Phil Murphy for data on travel patterns since the toll launched in January, including:
- Daily and weekly ridership data from every NJ Transit train, bus, and para-transit line — including crossings into the congestion relief zone, ideally broken out by hour.
- Daily and weekly vehicle use on the mainline of the New Jersey Turnpike and Garden State Parkway, broken down by type of vehicle, exit and time of day.
- Daily and weekly revenue data for the Turnpike and Garden State Parkway, broken down by toll plaza and exits.
- All available vehicular-caused air pollution data statewide, broken out by county.
- Daily and weekly ridership data on PATH trains, buses and para-transit for 2023, 2024 and 2025, separated out by line and by time of day.
- On-time performance for PATH trains and buses and customer journey and travel times for 2023, 2024 and 2025.
- Daily and weekly vehicle crossing data, broken down by type of transportation and hour, from every Port Authority bridge and tunnel for 2023, 2024 and 2025. This data should include crossings into the Manhattan congestion relief zone.
The data is more necessary than ever as officials seek to evaluate the impact of congestion pricing on travel times and travel patterns in the New York City region. The MTA, which operates congestion pricing, has filled much of that picture on its own — the data under New Jersey’s control is the missing link.
“We’ve been hearing a lot from commuters traveling from New Jersey into Manhattan about their commutes, but we don’t have the full picture because we don’t have all the data,” said Tri-State Transportation Campaign Director of Climate and Equity Policy Jaqi Cohen.
“We have a lot of data from the MTA, and we know that [the Port Authority and NJ Transit] are collecting this data,” Cohen said. “Obviously, it’s early in the program, but we still think that having that data can better inform transportation decisions that are made across the state.”
New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy opposed congestion pricing at every step of the way until its launch in January. Murphy lawsuit to stop the program on environmental impact grounds failed. Since its launch, he has sided with President Trump’s extra-legal effort to kill the toll.
Despite that, several New Jersey groups were among the 30 signatories on the letter calling for transparency — including New Jersey Policy Perspective, Make the Road NJ, NJ Sierra Club, New Jersey Bike & Walk Coalition, Environmental New Jersey, League of Women Voters NJ and more.
Other signatories included Reinvent Albany, Tri-State Transportation Campaign and the Regional Plan Association.
NJ Transit and the Port Authority do publish some user data, but it’s not shared in a way that anyone would call “open data” or classify as “ongoing” or “timely,” as the letters demand.
The Port Authority, a bi-state agency jointly run by New York and New Jersey, publishes average PATH train ridership by hour for every month, but on a delay in PDF form. Port bridge and tunnel crossing volumes are also eventually published, but also only in PDF form and on a delay.
The agency says this is in order to better reconcile the data. Advocates say that the agency needs to speed up the process.
“I think it’s a matter of priorities.The MTA has actually been releasing the crossing data for a long time, this isn’t some new effort,” said Reinvent Albany Senior Policy Advisory Rachael Fauss. “It’s just a matter of publishing it. Whatever reconciling needs to be done shouldn’t take months.”
NJ Transit fares even worse. The agency buries its ridership and revenue figures in a single annual report, while its “Performance by the Numbers” page only shares on-time performance by mode rather than route.
The MTA, in contrast, has been pumping out extraordinarily specific open data sets since congestion pricing began, including an interactive website that shows how many vehicles enter the tolling zone, broken down by type of vehicle, entry location and time of day. The MTA also publishes many more open data streams — including one that lists bridge and tunnel traffic broken down by crossing, time of day and vehicle type.
It wasn’t always that way at the MTA, however. The authority yielded to public pressure to allow for a more thorough look at what was going on, Cohen said.
“The MTA didn’t always release this data, there was a lot of advocacy around getting them to be more transparent in their operations, and they were pushed in the right direction,” she said. “I think that the agencies on the other side of the river need to be pushed in the right direction as well.”
More transparency at the agencies would also prevent concern-trolling stunts like Murphy’s recent letter to the Port Authority demanding the agency — which, recall, he half-controls — provide data to show that congestion pricing was hurting the agency.
“Murphy asked for all that data and it was ridiculous, because you control the Port Authority. So it’s just the basic principle that the MTA has daily ridership and bridge crossing data. Why doesn’t the Port Authority,” said Fauss.
Port Authority spokesman Seth Stein said the agency is reviewing the letter. Reps for NJ Transit did not return a request for comment.
New Jersey
Jersey Shore beach roped off to protect nesting birds just in time for Memorial Day weekend
They took them under their wing.
A large stretch of a Jersey Shore beach is roped off to protect a bird’s nest just in time for Memorial Day weekend.
A pair of American Oystercatchers made their home on the sand in Belmar — and New Jersey Fish and Wildlife is prohibiting beachgoers from trespassing in the area to protect them and their eggs, according to NJ Advance Media.
The agency erected signs at 7th Avenue Beach — one of the most popular spots in Belmar — that say “Do Not Enter,” and explain that the area is a nesting area for the shorebirds, which are protected under federal law.
The placards also warn that “harassing these birds, their eggs or their young” can incur a $50,000 fine or jail time.
The birds are not listed as endangered or threatened species in New Jersey, according to Conserve Wildlife Foundation of New Jersey.
However, their status has been to changed to one of “special concern.”
Many on social media agreed with the agency’s efforts to protect the creatures, which are known for their black and white body and long orange-red bill.
“Love love love this!!!! Beautiful birds! One of my favorite!” one gushed.
“Leave that cute birdie alone people,” another added.
Others thought even more safety precautions were needed.
“We should send a biologist or conservation police to guard the area,” one wrote.
DEP officials told the outlet that the length of time the area would be closed will be determined by whether the chicks opt to remain there after hatching.
If the baby birds decide to relocate to another spot on the beach, that new area will be closed off instead, the agency added.
It’s been nearly a decade and a half since the Brooklyn Nets moved out of New Jersey.
The organization has completely revamped its vibe since switching states, ditching the red, white and blue look for a very basic black and white colorway.
The Nets have also intermittently changed the colors of the banners hanging up in the Barclays Center from red, white and blue to black and white, much to the chagrin of traditional Nets fans.
Despite the Nets now playing in a bigger market and being far removed from their days in the Garden State, some fans seem to hope for the Nets to make their return across the river. New Jersey governor Mikie Sherrill was asked about the matter.
“I mean, would I support it? I ask about it all the time,” Sherrill said. “I love the idea. So, I have been pressing for that. I haven’t made a lot of headway yet; you know, maybe in my second 100 days.
“But I do think there is some work being done for some — I don’t know if I’m allowed to say too much about it — but some people are working on some different sports coming into the Rock.”
As time went on, the Nets eventually started to embrace more of their New Jersey roots, which started when they rocked a clean tie-dye jersey from the 90s during the 2020-21 season.
The next season, the Nets followed it up with uniforms commemorating their run in the 2000s, when the team got to the NBA Finals in 2002 and 2003 and endlessly broke the ESPN top 10 with each crazy Jason Kidd assist and Vince Carter dunk.
It’s fitting that Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, the latter of whom grew up in New Jersey as a Nets fan, got to rock these uniforms, helping boost the popularity of the New Jersey brand to a wide array of fans.
True Nets fans embraced the Continental Airlines Arena/Izod Center and the swamps of East Rutherford, getting to witness a winning basketball team for a fraction of the cost of the team mired in dysfunction that happened to play their home games at “The World’s Most Famous Arena.”
Not many marquee free agents would have signed up to play in New Jersey, but real fans remember the good times in the swamps, especially with Sly the Fox as the team’s mascot. Those times deserve to be remembered properly.
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ATLANTIC COUNTY, N.J. (WPVI) — Drivers heading to the shore on Friday afternoon saw slow-moving traffic for several miles coming off the Walt Whitman bridge, but many travelers said the start of the holiday weekend was smoother than they anticipated.
Aldara Madden, who was traveling with her friend Elana Maser, said the trip moved faster than she expected.
“I was expecting it to take a lot longer,” she said.
Maser added that they left school early to avoid delays.
“My mom and I do that every year and then we always stop here as our little pre-down the shore,” she said.
Others shared similar experiences.
“I’m coming from Bucks County, so I was worried there was gonna be some traffic but it really wasn’t bad at all,” said Erin McFadden of Churchville, who was headed to Ocean City.
AAA reported that while slightly more people are traveling by car this year compared to last, 2026 is projected to have the lowest year-over-year travel growth rate in more than a decade, excluding the steep drop seen in 2020 during the pandemic.
The organization attributes the slowdown largely to concerns over rising prices.
“Gas is ridiculously expensive and I think all the time before going anywhere these days,” said Debbie Maser of Philadelphia. “But this is our happy place and nothing can keep us away.”
A dreary weekend forecast may also be influencing travel patterns.
“I was thinking that, I wonder if there’ll be less congestion on the roads because of the weather,” said Kyra Wolin of Massachusetts. “It’s not looking to be too good this weekend with the rain.”
Still, many shore-bound travelers said tradition outweighs any concerns about rain or crowds.
“No not at all. You go down. You get it done,” said George Miller of Lansdale.
Eric Wolin of Massachusetts agreed: “Never, never. Margate’s a special place for us.”
As the unofficial start of summer begins, travelers said they remain committed to kicking off the season in their favorite spots, not letting rain, traffic, or high prices keep them away.
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