Toll of Commuting: Boxcar bus offers an alternative to NJ during reduced train service
Boxcar claims it's seeing 50% more customers during the cutover.
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There are still three more weeks of reduced train service during the Portal Bridge cutover. But luckily, commuters have options.
News 12 set out to find the fastest way into Manhattan and the best value.
Tom Krosnowski took the Boxcar bus, while Amanda Eustice rode New Jersey Transit and the PATH from the same start point - Watchung Avenue in Montclair - and met up in Midtown.
Boxcar claims it's seeing 50% more customers during the cutover. Commuter Kenzie Holtz, visiting from Austin, Texas, is one of the new customers. She took the bus to check into her usually remote job in Midtown.
"It was pretty easy to follow at first - there was like a $30 gift card for your first time, which was good," said Holtz. "Tracking the bus and finding the stops was a little difficult."
The bus came by Watchung Avenue two minutes behind schedule. The Port Authority and NJ Transit are telling customers to expect delays near the Lincoln Tunnel due to construction of the new Midtown bus terminal.
Boxcar offers several routes with drop-off points near Port Authority and Bryant Park, and several other Midtown stops.
"There's chargers. I saw people doing work. It was quiet, and very comfortable seating," said Holtz.
News 12's ride took exactly one hour and cost $22.99 one way - faster than the train, but at a higher cost.
