NJT replaces Meadowlands track bus shuttle with taxi service Options

[KevinKorell]

From NJ TRANSIT's website:

Meadowlands Racetrack Customers will be Accommodated by Taxi Service

Effective Saturday, February 7, 2009, NJ TRANSIT will implement new procedures for #353 bus customers traveling between Secaucus Junction and the Meadowlands Racetrack.

Customers traveling to racetrack events will no longer be transported by bus. Instead, customers will receive a voucher for roundtrip taxi transportation to and from the racetrack.

To travel from Secaucus Junction to the Meadowlands Racetrack:

1. Visit the Secaucus Junction Customer Service Office (located in the Rotunda) to exchange your #353 bus ticket for roundtrip taxi vouchers. Vouchers are only valid on the date issued.

2. Go to the taxi lane. Voucher taxi service to the racetrack is provided by “Good Fellas Taxi Service.” (Vouchers will not be accepted by other taxi services.)

3. Present your voucher to the taxi driver.

4. To return to Secaucus, call Good Fellas Taxi Service at
(201) 953-2929 at least 30 minutes prior to your desired pick-up time.

5. Present your return-trip voucher to the taxi driver.

If you have any questions regarding this new service, please see a Customer Service representative at Secaucus Junction or call us at (973) 275-5555 .

As background, orginally there was a #351 bus directly from New York's Port Authority Bus Terminal (PABT) to the Meadowlands, stopping at whatever venue (race track, Izod Center/former Continental Arena, or Giants Stadium) had an event taking place. Last year, they first replaced all #351 service with a much shorter bus shuttle #353 that only ran from Secaucus Junction rail station to the event venues.

This decision was made for several reasons: traffic issues in the Lincoln Tunnel, capacity issues at PABT, and also by running the #353 shuttle from Secaucus Junction there was transportation to the Meadowlands from virtually any rail point in New Jersey as well as NYC. With Xanadu soon to become the fourth venue at the Meadowlands, and with the new rail spur nearing completion, another idea of utilizing Secaucus Junction was to get people used to taking trains out of New York City rather than buses.

During the fall football season, they found that the new shuttle arrangement was not handling such crowds going to Giants Stadium very well, so they brought back the #351 for home football games only.

Now, it seems that the new arrangement has not been doing very well for the horse race crowds. Too many football fans and too few horse race fans. So they are discontinuing the #353 shuttle for them and putting them in taxi cabs. That's going to kill off any remaining business they might have had using this mode.

So hopefully this train-to-taxi transfer is short-lived, and they will have people use the trains once the new spur opens up to the Meadowlands later this year.

This post has been edited by KevinKorell: Feb 4 2009, 12:42 AM

[Long Train Runnin']

From NJ TRANSIT's website:

Meadowlands Racetrack Customers will be Accommodated by Taxi Service

Effective Saturday, February 7, 2009, NJ TRANSIT will implement new procedures for #353 bus customers traveling between Secaucus Junction and the Meadowlands Racetrack.

Customers traveling to racetrack events will no longer be transported by bus. Instead, customers will receive a voucher for roundtrip taxi transportation to and from the racetrack.

To travel from Secaucus Junction to the Meadowlands Racetrack:

1. Visit the Secaucus Junction Customer Service Office (located in the Rotunda) to exchange your #353 bus ticket for roundtrip taxi vouchers. Vouchers are only valid on the date issued.

2. Go to the taxi lane. Voucher taxi service to the racetrack is provided by “Good Fellas Taxi Service.” (Vouchers will not be accepted by other taxi services.)

3. Present your voucher to the taxi driver.

4. To return to Secaucus, call Good Fellas Taxi Service at
(201) 953-2929 at least 30 minutes prior to your desired pick-up time.

5. Present your return-trip voucher to the taxi driver.

If you have any questions regarding this new service, please see a Customer Service representative at Secaucus Junction or call us at (973) 275-5555 .

As background, orginally there was a #351 bus directly from New York's Port Authority Bus Terminal (PABT) to the Meadowlands, stopping at whatever venue (race track, Izod Center/former Continental Arena, or Giants Stadium) had an event taking place. Last year, they first replaced all #351 service with a much shorter bus shuttle #353 that only ran from Secaucus Junction rail station to the event venues.

This decision was made for several reasons: traffic issues in the Lincoln Tunnel, capacity issues at PABT, and also by running the #353 shuttle from Secaucus Junction there was transportation to the Meadowlands from virtually any rail point in New Jersey as well as NYC. With Xanadu soon to become the fourth venue at the Meadowlands, and with the new rail spur nearing completion, another idea of utilizing Secaucus Junction was to get people used to taking trains out of New York City rather than buses.

During the fall football season, they found that the new shuttle arrangement was not handling such crowds going to Giants Stadium very well, so they brought back the #351 for home football games only.

Now, it seems that the new arrangement has not been doing very well for the horse race crowds. Too many football fans and too few horse race fans. So they are discontinuing the #353 shuttle for them and putting them in taxi cabs. That's going to kill off any remaining business they might have had using this mode.

So hopefully this train-to-taxi transfer is short-lived, and they will have people use the trains once the new spur opens up to the Meadowlands later this year.

Thats actually really sad... I mean I don't know how popular this service is but I can't imagine covering these peoples cab fares, unless they worked out a really good deal with the company, could be cheaper then running a single bus between the two points.