"East Side Access"

1. How many passengers a day (round-trip) commute between New Jersey and Penn Station on a typical weekday?

2. How many of those passengers commute to the East Side (around the Grand Central Terminal Area)?

1. According to this page, NJT has 79,616 boardings on an average weekday at NY Penn.
2. IDK

But, what does East Side Access have to do with NJT?

1=NJ TRANSIT FACTS AT A GLANCE

2=1,013 by my count. If you have a better answer, post it.

I am not sure of the exact number, but a good portion of NJT riders hikes over to the E subway and gets off at 5 Av or Lexington Av, in which the train literally empties out before it heads into Queens. Many E trains in the morning rush at Penn Sta are packed to capacity.

I am sure the OP is not referring to the actual "East Side Access" project, as this will not help travelers from Penn Sta to get to GCT.

So, let's say around 160,000 round trip weekday trips between New Jersey and Penn Station--or even a little more!

But, we still do not know how many of those people are actually commuting to the East Side.

The reason why I asked is to figure out what would truly be more beneficial to New Jersey Commuters--Gateway Project or Seven Subway Extension to Secaucus Junction.

Even if you knew how many NJ commuters go between Penn Station and the Grand Central area, I don't know how that'll tell you how many of them would prefer a long subway ride, although with reasonable hope of an inbound seat, from Secaucus to Grand Central vs a shorter 2 train subway ride from Penn Station to Grand Central, or a long walk.

If what F40 says is true, a good number of them using the E, 53rd St, might not find the 7 subway, 42nd St, all that attractive.

Patrick Boylan wrote:Even if you knew how many NJ commuters go between Penn Station and the Grand Central area, I don't know how that'll tell you how many of them would prefer a long subway ride, although with reasonable hope of an inbound seat, from Secaucus to Grand Central vs a shorter 2 train subway ride from Penn Station to Grand Central, or a long walk.

If what F40 says is true, a good number of them using the E, 53rd St, might not find the 7 subway, 42nd St, all that attractive.

Well, many E train commuters will actually stop relying on the E Train during Rush Hour once the real East Side Access Project opens (since many LIRR commuters will simply take a train to Grand Central).

Thus, this would free up more room for NJ Transit commuters to get to the East Side.

Does this mean that, in a few years when many Port Authority projects are completed or nearing completion, that PA money would be better spent on the Gateway Project than the Seven Extension to Secaucus?

The PA has a lot of projects to do including WTC, Goethals Bridge, Bayonne Bridge, EWR terminal A, LGA CTB, PATH extension to EWR, GWB, Lincoln Tunnel, etc. I don't see them finishing up anytime soon. And Gateway is not an NJ project, so the Port Authority will likely not get involved. The best thing that can happen for NJ is that businesses come to NJ's cities like Newark and Jersey City.

The 7 to Sec requires the MTA to cooperate with NJ. In recent decades they have not been willing to do that. Running HBLR over the Bayonne Bridge would be a relatively cheap project as these things go but MTA won't consider it. They prevented any planning for a tunnel from NJ to go to the East Side--I'm talking about the tunnel killed by Christie eventually. That was partly because they were worried about interfering with their own East Side Access project. NJ is probably not willing to spend any money at all on major transit projects right now, and traffic cones look like they have prevented early exit for Christie. But even with a new governor, I don't know if NJ would be willing to put up any money.

We can't even get the LIRR into GCT on budget or on time and you're worried about NJT passengers having ESA? Foam on dude. Foam on.

runningwithscalpels wrote:We can't even get the LIRR into GCT on budget or on time and you're worried about NJT passengers having ESA? Foam on dude. Foam on.

This site needs a "like" feature...

*curtsies* Why thank you

Thomas wrote: Well, many E train commuters will actually stop relying on the E Train during Rush Hour once the real East Side Access Project opens (since many LIRR commuters will simply take a train to Grand Central).

Thus, this would free up more room for NJ Transit commuters to get to the East Side.

That sounds like an argument against the Secaucus 7. If there's more room on the E because LIRR commuters who used to go to Penn Station can now go straight to Grand Central, then NJT passengers would have less reason to want to trade the long 7 subway ride from Secaucus and would find the shorter E ride from 34th St more attractive. Especially those who want to go to the area 11 blocks north of Grand Central (42nd St vs 53rd St) that the E serves.

morris&essex4ever wrote:The PA has a lot of projects to do including WTC, Goethals Bridge, Bayonne Bridge, EWR terminal A, LGA CTB, PATH extension to EWR, GWB, Lincoln Tunnel, etc. I don't see them finishing up anytime soon. And Gateway is not an NJ project, so the Port Authority will likely not get involved. The best thing that can happen for NJ is that businesses come to NJ's cities like Newark and Jersey City.

You really think that the Port Authority will not partially fund Gateway?

Even more reason why your ridiculous fantasy won't happen. Unless you happen to be privy to a field of money trees nobody else is.