Development continues to impact life in Jersey City including local mass transit services. In 2006, Central Avenue temporarily lost its bus service and it took the involvement of the entire community to get it back. The CASID continues to work with community leaders and elected officials to further restore and improve mass transit services along Central Avenue. For the convenience of our constituents, we have constructed this page to keep you up to date on this very important issue.
On October 3, 2011, COACH USA Red & Tan announced its intent to discontinue service on both bus routes #4 and #99-S effective Midnight on November 6, 2011. By October 14, 2011, elected officials announced that the lines would be saved by transferring to other operators. More information and updates on this matter will be posted here as it becomes available.
The New 119 Bus Line (5am to 10pm Monday thru Saturday):
Click here for more local transit options.
NJ Transit tickets for the No. 119 and other bus lines can be purchased locally at DC Travel Bureau Inc (just off of Central Avenue at 2 Lincoln St, Jersey City) which is a Commissioned Ticket Agent. DC Travel sells one-way and ten trip tickets as well as monthly passes. For directions or store hours, please call: 201.653.1600.
Click here for a look back at the changes to mass transit on Central Avenue (2006-2011).
Patch – NJ Transit Beefing Up Hudson County Bus Service on 119 Route
June 19, 2019
An extra 12 bus trips per day will soon begin on NJ Transit’s 119 route, part of an effort to beef up service on a heavily used line in Hudson County, officials announced Thursday. Starting on Monday, June 24, underutilized buses in Hudson County will be reassigned to
accommodate increasing ridership on the No. 119 route, NJ Transit reported.
Full Story>
Jersey Journal – Jersey City is growing and buses to NYC are packed. Here’s your chance to talk about it.
May 13, 2019
Bus riders in the Jersey City Heights who have questions and concerns about how bus service is keeping up with demand will get a chance to talk to NJ Transit’s boss Tuesday night. The forum with NJ Transit Executive Director Kevin Corbett will take place at 7 p.m., Tuesday at Alaris 178 Ogden Street, between Franklin and Ferry Streets in Jersey City. Yes, you can take an 84, 87 or 123 bus there. The meeting was arranged by state Assemblyman Raj Mukherji, D-Hudson after a petition was presented to him calling for better bus service last year, signed by about 800 Heights bus riders, said Roger Heitmann, Riverview Neighborhood Association Treasurer.pariatur.
Full Story>
Jersey Journal – NJ Transit to offer 24-hour bus service to NYC from Jersey City Heights
June 24, 2016
Residents of the Jersey City Heights are getting their long-awaited 24-hour access to New York City, thanks to expanded NJ Transit bus service. Mayor Steve Fulop and NJ Transit officials announced today that beginning Saturday, the No. 119 bus line will operate on a 24-hour schedule on weekdays and Saturdays. Previously, the No. 119 bus stopped service between 9 and 10 p.m. making it difficult for residents of the Heights who worked overnight or late night shifts in New York City to return home.
Full Story>
Jersey Journal – NJ Transit expanding No. 119 bus route during Pulaski Skyway shutdown
April 15, 2014
NJ Transit is expanding the midday and Saturday service of its No. 119 bus route, which connects Bayonne and Jersey City to the Port Authority Bus Terminal in Manhattan, to mitigate the impact of the Pulaski Skyway shutdown. Starting on Monday, April 21, the 119 bus will operate every 30 minutes between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. on weekdays and every 60 minutes between 5 a.m. and 10 p.m. on Saturdays. Prior to this expansion, the 119 bus only operated on weekdays during peak periods. The route begins at Third Avenue and Kennedy Boulevard in Bayonne and runs along Kennedy Boulevard through Jersey City, onto Willow Avenue and 14th Street in Hoboken and then heads into Manhattan.
Jersey City Independent – Campaign Urges Locals to Report ‘Each and Every’ NJ Transit Issue
September 25, 2013
Got a problem with NJ Transit? Report it! Two Jersey City Heights-based organizations are urging locals to report “each and every” time they have a problem with NJ Transit service. This record, they say, will be key when pushing for the transportation agency to address what they say are increasingly prevalent problems.
“There’s been a steady increase over the last couple months of complaints week to week about problems on buses from people from our membership and other commuters,” says Becky Hoffman, president of the Riverview Neighborhood Association (RNA). “It’s a tremendous hardship for people.” Hoffman says there are problems on lines going up Palisade Avenue and through the Heights in general. “The complaints come almost daily, in particular about the 119 bus,” she says. The bus runs through Bayonne and travels down Kennedy Boulevard through Jersey City and Hoboken before heading into New York. “At Port Authority in the evening, sometimes the buses don’t show or the line is so long that there are more people waiting than can get on the bus.”
David Diaz, district manager for the Central Avenue Special Improvement District, the other organization behind the campaign, agrees that the 119 encounters many problems.
Full Story>
Jersey Journal – NJ Transit execs get an earful from customers at Hoboken Terminal forum
February 16, 2013
NJ Transit held a “We Are Listening” forum at the Hoboken Terminal, where a dozen top agency executives sat at tables on the station concourse in front of the waiting room to listen to the concerns of commuters and hand out informational pamphlets. James Weinstein, the executive director of NJ Transit, said some issues would be addressed immediately. Other problems present a “real challenge,” he said.
For example, he spoke to a Jersey City Heights resident who is unhappy with the NJ Transit 119 bus service between Bayonne and the Port Authority Bus Terminal in Manhattan, saying he wants more frequent and better service. Weinstein blamed the aging Port Authority Bus Terminal, saying it’s in need of major renovations and is “past capacity.”.
Full Story>
Jersey Journal – Bayonne Mayor Smith aims to prevent bus company from ceasing service to JFK Blvd
March 7, 2012
A bus company notified the City of Bayonne it would be discontinuing its service on John F. Kennedy Blvd., but Mayor Mark Smith aims to prevent that from happening.
According to the press release, Trans-Hudson Express, Inc., notified the city via a hand-delivered letter yesterday that it intends to cease operation of the No. 10 Boulevard Bus on April 8. Smith, who said the notice did not conform to state law, announced he had demanded the company continue service on the route until an agreement can be reached.
Full Story>
The Top Five Needs of the New 119 Bus Route
October 31, 2011
Hudson County commuters and bus riders were relieved to hear Coach USA’s soon to be defunct bus 10/99s bus line that ran from Bayonne, through Jersey City and into Midtown Manhattan, would be replaced after it ended on November 6th. On November 7th, NJ Transit and Academy Bus Company will replace the 10/99s bus route with the brand new 119 bus route into the Port Authority Bus Terminal in Midtown Manhattan.
As the new plans for the 119 Bus Route have emerged, a number of Jersey City Heights-based 10/99s commuters have voiced their fears that the current plan for the new 119 bus will leave many riders out in the cold. At No.5. Jersey City Locations to Purchase Monthly and 10-Trip Ticket Passes. Where is someone supposed to pick up their NJ Ticket passes if they live in Jersey City or Bayonne? Convenience is key.
Full Story>
Jersey Journal – Portions of discontinued 4 and 99S bus lines will resume under different operators
October 14, 2011
In a move that will delight commuters, local shoppers and Jersey City business owners, NJ Transit and A&C Bus will take up the bus routes that Red & Tan bus company announced last week it is discontinuing, and there will be no lapse in service, state and local officials said today.
A&C will take over Red & Tan’s 4 bus, which runs from Merritt Street to the Newport Center mall, according to Jersey City Mayor Jerramiah Healy, who just emerged from a meeting with state officials called to discuss the matter.
NBC News – Jersey City Merchants Gripe Over Bus Service Cancellation
October 13, 2011
Merchants along a busy main street in Jersey City are fighting plans to end bus service there. Bus company Red and Tan Lines announced it will end all bus service on Central Avenue after Nov. 6, citing declining ridership. It said it was no longer able to make a profit on the run. “It’s a death penalty,” Michael Yun of Garden State News said, emphasizing mass transportation as a critical issue for his community.
For Daniel Aguirra of Lodi, N.J., it means an end to his commute by car to the neighborhood, where he currently parks and then rides the bus to Manhattan. Aguirra said he frequently picks up food after work, or shops at the Central Avenue stores instead of going to Wal-Mart. Once the buses stop running, “I have no reason to come here,” Aguirra said.
Full Story and Video>
Jersey Journal – Bayonne mayor joins chorus of Jersey City merchants in calling on Red & Tan bus company to continue operating 99S route
October 11, 2011
Bayonne Mayor Mark Smith has called on the Red & Tan bus company to halt its plan to discontinue the 99S bus after Nov. 6.
The bus line, which runs from Bayonne through Jersey City and ends at the Port Authority bus terminal in New York, is one of two lines the company plans to discontinue next month, according to its general manager, who blamed low ridership for the decision.
But halting the 99S route is “unacceptable,” Smith said Friday in a news release.
Full Story>
Jersey Journal – Business owners on Jersey City’s Central Avenue object to imminent end of 99S bus
October 10, 2011
Business owners on Jersey City’s Central Avenue are “going crazy” over bus company Red & Tan’s imminent decision to halt the 99S bus, which runs along the business corridor.
Michael Yun, who owns Garden State news and heads the Central Avenue Special Improvement District board, said Red & Tan’s move will devastate businesses there, leaving shoppers no way to get to Central Avenue from other parts of the city.
“It’s a very critical issue for the business community,” Yun said.
Full Story>
Jersey Journal – Jersey City and Bayonne will lose 99S and 4 buses; Red & Tan Lines says their ridership is low
October 7, 2011
The Red & Tan bus company will eliminate its 99S and 4 buses next month, an action that could leave commuters scrambling to find alternative routes to work.
The 99S bus starts in Bayonne, travels up Kennedy Boulevard to Journal Square, then north on Central Avenue and ends at the Port Authority bus terminal in New York. The 4 bus travels from Merritt Street to Newport Center in Jersey City. The two lines will cease running after Nov. 6.
Full Story>
Click here for a look back at the changes to mass transit on Central Avenue (2006-2011).