The "New" New Jersey Subway
Transforming Hudson-Bergen County into a more sustainable and well-connected neighborhood.
Since New Jersey's economy has boosted during the early 19C, its population exponentially grew along with industrial factories, railways, and canals servicing both internally and externally to NYC and beyond. Major cities that are still known today as New Jersey’s main hubs serve as important nuclei for the American people in the Northeast region.
Recovering from the Great Depression in the mid-20C, New Jersey has tremendously grown becoming a multi-billion dollar industry, especially along the Hudson-Bergen County with the help of NYC economic offsets, but at the same time cast under its giant neighbor’s shadow. Several major transportation and infrastructure projects in the previous century such as PATH, International Airports (Newark & Atlantic City), NJ Turnpike, and the Garden State Parkway made New Jersey a better-connected state.
Recovering from the Great Depression in the mid-20C, New Jersey has tremendously grown becoming a multi-billion dollar industry, especially along the Hudson-Bergen County with the help of NYC economic offsets, but at the same time cast under its giant neighbor’s shadow. Several major transportation and infrastructure projects in the previous century such as PATH, International Airports (Newark & Atlantic City), NJ Turnpike, and the Garden State Parkway made New Jersey a better-connected state.
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‘New Jersey grew and prospered during the early 1800s. New factories sprung up throughout the state. Paterson became a textile center and later became known for producing trains and silk. Trenton produced clay products, iron, and steel. Camden, Elizabeth, Jersey City, Newark, and Passaic all became major manufacturing centers in the 1800s.’
- Official Site of the State of New Jersey (link) |
Where New Jersey is now clustered with big and small unique communities, people here still heavily rely on private vehicles obviously due to the urban sprawl that occurred over the last several decades. People commuting between NY and NJ suffer from limited pipelines stranded on a highway emitting unstoppable greenhouse gases. Loss of nature and farm areas has led to an unsustainable and more harmful environment than before, and this leads to a threat to public health.
We wish that there is a simple way to fix these damaged communities but life isn’t like SimCity where you can simply hit the ‘Delete’ button. So, how can we transform the issue into a more sustainable and less dependent on private automobiles? There is no answer with one click, but we could start somewhere with what we are already familiar with, no need for car keys, easily accessible via walk and bike, and quick without traffic jams. Subway.
We wish that there is a simple way to fix these damaged communities but life isn’t like SimCity where you can simply hit the ‘Delete’ button. So, how can we transform the issue into a more sustainable and less dependent on private automobiles? There is no answer with one click, but we could start somewhere with what we are already familiar with, no need for car keys, easily accessible via walk and bike, and quick without traffic jams. Subway.
Comprehensive New Jersey (Hudson-Bergen County) Subway Map
Transforming New Jersey suburbs into subway-friendly zones would not only benefit New Jersey residents but also allow visitors to easily access many different inland neighborhoods and empower the local economy. Of course, what you see on the map does not fully cover the whole state, just two counties, but the point here is to flip the coin by expanding public transit through a new subway network that allows greater accessibility and promotes time-efficient trips. Commuters without private vehicles from sprawl neighborhoods would no longer need to rely on long waiting buses at Port Authority especially during a tough season when rubber tires are prone to slippery snow leading to disastrous traffic jams and accidents.
New Jersey (Hudson-Bergen County) Subway Map
Past proposals and ongoing projects crossing east to west of Manhattan have great potential on supporting this new subway system. The No. 7 subway line connecting to Secaucus, NJ (link) was brought up a few times to draw business and commuters to the Hudson Yards development project, though all scrapped due to the cost. Already the existing PATH system is experiencing heavy commuter traffic between NJ and NY and is expected to exceed capacity if following the trend of commuter growth from Newark, Hoboken, and Jersey City. Also, the final Phase 2 of the Second Avenue Subway (link) would also align with the Harlem 125th St connection. Other than buses, there aren’t a lot of subway lines that connect from east to west. This additional horizontal network could benefit NJ commuters who would wish to transfer to other north-south MTA subway lines.
Electricity Sources and Fuel-Cycle Emissions, 2021 EIA data - Courtesy of U.S. Department of Energy (link)
Vehicle miles traveled per person from 1975 to 2019 for New Jersey. - Courtesy of NJDEP (link)
Increased VMT (vehicle miles traveled) per capita usually increases greenhouse gas and carbon emission, and even though electric vehicles do typically produce lower harmful emissions as a carbon-free transit, the average electricity source for New Jersey is highly dependent on natural gas and power plants that may generate emissions. Other renewable energy sources are yet far behind the dominant which we desire for a net-zero emission future but EV riders will have to be heavily reliant on these dominant energy sources.
Increased VMT (vehicle miles traveled) per capita usually increases greenhouse gas and carbon emission, and even though electric vehicles do typically produce lower harmful emissions as a carbon-free transit, the average electricity source for New Jersey is highly dependent on natural gas and power plants that may generate emissions. Other renewable energy sources are yet far behind the dominant which we desire for a net-zero emission future but EV riders will have to be heavily reliant on these dominant energy sources.
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‘… Santiago’s subway system, one of Latin America’s biggest, will buy 60% of its energy from solar and wind projects.’
- The Wall Street Journal, June 2017 (link) |
Public transit benefits from a fund such as the $1.6 billion investment in Bipartisan Infrastructure Law by the Biden-Harris Administration, Low or No Emission Vehicle Program — 5339(c). EVs (electric vehicles) such as Tesla will also contribute to a cleaner future that will help on reducing the demand for fossil fuels that cause global warming, and according to the IRS, purchasing a new plug-in EV or FCV (fuel cell vehicle) in 2023 may allow you to qualify for a clean vehicle tax credit. But any new public transit needs to start with an investment which is the most elementary and critical part of the whole process. Where and how will you dig a tunnel for the subway? Can a company like Boring Company become a good investor?
Courtesy of MTA (link)
The MTA’s 2025–2044 20-year Needs Assessment addresses a comprehensive plan with a list of projects to be evaluated for track improvements and new subway lines such as the Phase 3 Second Avenue Subway. Creating additional subway connections between New Jersey and New York would be a controversial and difficult topic in which the Port Authority of NY & NJ has to play a major role, but it is not totally unrealistic. Already a huge amount is being invested in improving the two states’ connection such as George Washington Bridge, Holland and Lincoln Tunnels, and PATH according to the Port Authority of NY & NJ’s 2017–2026 Capital Plan. Could a new subway line in northern Manhattan help ease the traffic-congested George Washington Bridge? What about Lincoln Tunnel? Not to diminish, new subways would cost several decades’ worth of capital plan investment, if worse, century-long. The amount of carbon emission generated from constructing these new transit systems is also going to be a huge subject that is yet resolved.
Being a multi-trillion dollar project for this comprehensive New Jersey subway system will be a question mark that needs to be elaborated on in the future. Do New Jersey residents really need this new NJ subway system? Will NYC support these additional inflows to their neighborhood? Is the subway going to still exist in the future? The answer is unknown, a consensus from various communities and stakeholders would determine the future of New Jersey’s public transit.
Being a multi-trillion dollar project for this comprehensive New Jersey subway system will be a question mark that needs to be elaborated on in the future. Do New Jersey residents really need this new NJ subway system? Will NYC support these additional inflows to their neighborhood? Is the subway going to still exist in the future? The answer is unknown, a consensus from various communities and stakeholders would determine the future of New Jersey’s public transit.
