Princeton to NYC Daily Commute (Princeton Junction: house, transfer, to buy)

[good_samaritan]

Hi,

I currently live in NYC and am planning to buy a house in Princeton. I intend to move to Princeton in a month or two depending on how the deal goes. I am curious to know what are my options to commute to NYC (midtown) on a daily basis.

I did some research on the internet and found that taking a train from Princeton Junction is the best option but getting a parking space at the Princeton junction is next to impossible (unless I reach station by 6 AM which is not feasible). The second option involves driving around 10 miles to park and ride exit 8A, parking the car there and taking a bus to midtown. I do not want to drive all the way so I am not considering that option at all.

All the above information is from 2008 - 2010 timeframe. I was just wondering whether things have changed in recent past.

Could somebody pls throw some light on the recent conditions? Has any additional variable come into play recently i.e. park & ride lot gets filled up by 8AM etc ? Has any other option opened up i.e. shuttle bus to Princeton Junction or Park & ride from Princeton? Reliable car pooling services?

Any input on the subject would be highly appreciated.

Thanks.

[slope95]

Originally Posted by good_samaritan

Hi,

I currently live in NYC and am planning to buy a house in Princeton. I intend to move to Princeton in a month or two depending on how the deal goes. I am curious to know what are my options to commute to NYC (midtown) on a daily basis.

I did some research on the internet and found that taking a train from Princeton Junction is the best option but getting a parking space at the Princeton junction is next to impossible (unless I reach station by 6 AM which is not feasible). The second option involves driving around 10 miles to park and ride exit 8A, parking the car there and taking a bus to midtown. I do not want to drive all the way so I am not considering that option at all.

All the above information is from 2008 - 2010 timeframe. I was just wondering whether things have changed in recent past.

Could somebody pls throw some light on the recent conditions? Has any additional variable come into play recently i.e. park & ride lot gets filled up by 8AM etc ? Has any other option opened up i.e. shuttle bus to Princeton Junction or Park & ride from Princeton? Reliable car pooling services?

Any input on the subject would be highly appreciated.

Thanks.

if you are living in princeton itself are you walking distance from princeton station? if so, the train from princeton to princeton junction is called the dinky. it's around 6/7 min. once at p.j, you transfer for an nec train to nyc.

i've never used it before, but maybe you can use Take a Bus From Princeton to NYC for $1 - Princeton, NJ Patch bus. i think that is http://www.coachusa.com/CoachUsaAsse...9/route100.PDF.

princeton also options a freeb jitney service to the train stop, but i cannot find the schedule.

[gwillyfromphilly]

The Dinky(Princeton Branch) tends to be pretty cohesive with the Northeast Corridor Line schedule. There is also Amtrak service at Princeton Junction that have trains going to New York City and Philadelphia.

[good_samaritan]

Thanks for your responses. I just realized that I provided a little misleading info. I would be moving to Plainsboro township having a Princeton address. To be precise, I would be moving to Princeton landing community right by route 1. Google map lets me know that Princeton station as well as Princeton Junction station, both, are around 4 miles away from the community I am moving into.

[daliowa]

Check if NJ Transit bus # 600 stops near the development. The 600 goes to the Princeton Jct. station.
www.njtransit.com for bus & train schedules.

[daliowa]

Coach Suburban bus has a route from Plainsboro to Manhattan, but looks like very limited service.
http://www.coachusa.com/suburban/ss....d=512154362081

[good_samaritan]

NJ Transit #600 looked promising to me when I started looking into it. But looks like it wouldn't be a sustainable from long term perspective. Here is why.

1. Walk to Princeton Forrestal Village stop (0.6 miles, 15 mins)
2. Take the bus
3. The bus takes approx 40 minutes to reach Princeton Junction Train Station
4. Take the train to NYC
5. Walk to Office from Penn Station

This is easily going to take more than 2 hours one way. The #600 service is pretty limited too. The return trip could be worse.

Looks like park & ride at exit 8A is the best option under the current circumstances. Any advice on using park & ride at 8A? The things I am looking for are:
1. Do they still charge $2 per day for parking?
2. Are they open 24 hours all 7 days a week?
3. Do they accept monthly pass at all times?
4. Is it better to buy individual tickets or monthly passes?
5. Is there any advisory on crowding in the parking lot?
6. Is there any specific parking better than the others?
7. Are the cars safe in the parking lot? Any hit & run instances? I have a brand new car, hence concerned.
8. Do we need to go to I-95 (pay toll) to get in the park & ride?
9. Do you get a bus as soon as you arrive or do you need to wait for next bus due to crowding?
10. Any other generic stuff to keep in mind?

Thank you so much for all your responses.

[JrzDefector]

I don't know if it's the same as it was, but parking was much better at the Hamilton station. Might be worth going out of there until you can get a parking permit for PJ. Taking the train is definitely the best option though - I used to get a lot of reading and napping done on that commute!

[stuckinsj]

Plenty of parking at Hamilton -- $7 a day. right off the freeway

[Lisa.Shhh]

Good_Samaritan: Did you ever figure out what you are gonna do? I am actually thinking of moving close to Princeton Junction and had those questions that you once had. Thank you!