NJ Transit handles World Cup crowds and commuters, but $98 fare draws ire

By Larry Higgs | NJ.com (TNS)

Tuesday was the first day that two unlikely groups — seasoned New Jersey commuters and World Cup soccer fans — were heading home at the same time after a 3 p.m. match at MetLife Stadium.

People from both groups reported no major problems with the experience, except for World Cup fans who said they weren’t happy about the $98 train fare.

Many commuters opted to work from home or take the day off.

“My ride in this morning was fine, this one we’ll see ,” said Carl Zapffe of Morristown who was waiting for a Morris & Essex Line train home at Penn Station in New York.

“It seems a lot of people took the day off today,” he said. “My train wasn’t as crowded as it was for a Tuesday and Tuesday is always the heaviest day.”

Part of Penn Station was closed for four hours before the 3 p.m. match to allow trains to leave every five minutes for MetLife Stadium, which was renamed New York-New Jersey Stadium for the eight World Cup games it is hosting. That process was repeated for three hours to allow trains to return after the match was over.

The only visible effect of that was crowds of World Cup fans in team jerseys who got off trains mixing with commuters in Penn Station’s waiting areas.

“I don’t know if it was the best plan to close down the station four hours before each game. I feel like they could have gone with some kind of limited service,” Zapffe said. “I don’t know what the other options were.”

Roger Wooden, a 50-year-old soccer fan from Northern Ireland, said his wife dropped him at the Elizabeth train station, where he took the train to Secaucus. He said he arrived at the stadium around 1:30 p.m. after a slight delay with the bus to MetLife.

His verdict was that everything was “well organized” and “very good.” Except the $98 price of the train ticket.

“It is crazy. There’s no option. We weren’t able to drive and park, and getting a ride or an Uber was just too (complicated),” Wooden said. ”We had no option but to do the $98 train ride."

Other World Cup spectators said the price point was really the only downside about NJ Transit’s service.

A 28-year-old from Miami named Tristan said he was in the area for work and was able to go to the game.

While his employer covered the cost of his train ticket, he said the $98 price was “steep” and “egregious.”

“I think it’s not an appropriate place to make money, especially because they cut down the parking significantly, so what other options do you have?“ he said. ”But otherwise, the process getting in was fine.”

Less gridlock compared to Saturday

The mostly positive comments about transportation to and from Tuesday’s game was a far cry from the numerous complaints about long delays faced by soccer fans at Saturday’s first World Cup game in East Rutherford.

In the aftermath of that game, gridlock choked the highways and streets surrounding the stadium as late as midnight, and fans waited in thick crowds at the designated ride-share area at the Meadowlands racetrack.

Some fans had been stuck in line for more than an hour Saturday after wandering the stadium grounds searching for a way out.

MetLife was the only host city stadium where FIFA eliminated parking. NJ Transit lowered the World Cup fare from $150 to $105. It was ultimately dropped to $98, thanks to various corporate sponsorships and advertising sales.

On Tuesday, some fans praised the directions and help from NJ Transit ambassadors getting them to trains and to the stadium.

“It was good, it was well structured,” said Seni Kolade of Cleveland. “There were a lot of people letting you know where to go... that worked well. The only down side was how expensive it was.”

Nadia Zridi of Stockholm was among a large group of World Cup fans who arrived in Penn Station at 6:20 p.m. She had left for the match at 11 a.m., far ahead of the 3 p.m. kickoff time.

“It was good,” she said about the train. ”It was very well organized."

Regular rail commuters said this World Cup match had little to no effect on their commute.

“None whatsoever, other than the train being lighter than normal, so I was able to get a seat,” said Holland Malone, who rides from South Orange.

He said NJ Transit handled the balance between providing World Cup and commuter service well.

“I had no problem at all, their instructions were clear,” he said.

NJ Transit sold more than 26,000 train tickets to MetLife Stadium on Tuesday. Agency CEO Kris Kolluri reported no problems with the movement of fans to the game. He said commuter traffic on the rails had been light that morning.

On the return trip, two trains had to skip Secaucus because of an Amtrak track switch issue, which was quickly resolved, Kolluri said.

“Volume was insane, however we had trains lined up for miles,” he said.

Most commuters interviewed in Penn Station Tuesday evening said their trip to work was lighter than usual.

One man who was nervously watching the train status screen said he had nothing to compare his trip to because this was his first day of work.

Of 16 commuters who responded to an NJ.com question on the Delayed on NJ Transit Facebook group, five said they took the train and encountered lighter than usual ridership.

Another seven said they worked from home and two said they took PATH.

Tanu Kabra said she received rare approval to work from home for the four World Cup matches falling on weekdays. Normally she works all five days in the office, riding NJ Transit’s Bergen Line to a Secaucus transfer to Penn Station.

Other commuters said they altered their work schedule because of Tuesday’s game.

“I went in today on the Montclair Boonton line. My boss told me to leave really early so I don’t get stuck,’ said Cindy Swabsin. ”I went to Hoboken and am waiting for the 1:58 to leave. No issues or problems."

PATH was also an option for NJ Transit commuters, whose rail tickets were being honored on that transit system.

However, commuter traffic in PATH’s 33rd Street station, located one block from Penn Station, wasn’t heavy at 5:30 p.m.

NJ Transit rail commuters were able to leave Penn Station New York on New Jersey-bound trains.

However, non-World Cup passengers weren’t able to access New York-bound trains after 5:23 p.m. during the three-hour window following the match.

Regular eastbound NJ Transit service was schedule to resume at 8:52 p.m., but it was restored more than an hour earlier at 7:39 p.m., according to alerts.

NJ.com staff writer Brian Fonseca contributed to this report.

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