Today (Sunday, Sept. 29) the city is scheduled to open the Hoboken station of the Hudson-Bergen Light Rail to the public. "We are very happy the light rail is now connected to Hoboken," said Mayor David Roberts Thursday. "We now look forward to the commercial development and job production that comes along with the opening of a new mass transit option."
Eventually, the trains will run up the city’s west side and all the way to Weehawken.
The hours of operation for the new light rail station near the city’s border with Jersey City are 5 a.m. to 1 a.m. most days, Saturdays from 6 a.m. to 1 a.m., and Sundays and holidays between 6 a.m. and midnight. Riders can purchase a single ride ticket for $1.50, a monthly pass for $53 and 10-trip ticket for $13.
The light rail uses "proof of payment" fare collection. Meaning that prior to boarding, customers buy tickets at ticket vending machines and then those tickets must be dated and time-stamped in the ticket validator machine near the ticket vending machine before boarding the train.
Tickets are valid for up to 90 minutes after they are time-stamped. NJ Transit officials will randomly board trains and may request tickets from passengers. Passengers who do not have a ticket will be issued a summons with a maximum fine of $100. Monthly passes do not need to be validated.
With the northern terminal of the light rail now open, the light rail is approximately 9.5 miles long and according to NJ Transit officials is expected to generate up to 15,000 trips daily.
The opening of the Hoboken terminal of the light rail marks the completion of the first phase of the $992 million project. On April 15, 2000 the light rail first opened with service available at 12 stations between West Side Avenue and Exchange Place in Jersey City, and between East 34th and in Bayonne and Exchange Place. Three additional stations, including a stop at Newport Mall opened on Nov. 18, 2000.
Phase two extends the track in Bayonne by one stop to East 22nd Street and is scheduled to open in 2003. Scheduled to open in 2004 are four additional stations: Two in Hoboken, at Second and Ninth streets, and two in Weehawken, at the Lincoln Harbor and at the Port Imperial ferry terminals.
The third phase is planned to extend service into Bergen County after 2004.
"I’m looking forward to opening," said Hoboken resident and Exchange Place employee Ronald Reagan. "The more mass transit options that are available the fewer people there are driving their cars, which makes everyone’s life a little easier."