Commuting from Scranton to New York City (Wilkes-Barre, Columbia: 2010, college)

[racerlux]

Has anyone commuted to the city on public transportation?? If so, how long does your trip lasts??? what are the options? Cheap, reliable and fast!!....

Thanks,

Racer.

[ScranBarre]

Originally Posted by racerlux

Has anyone commuted to the city on public transportation?? If so, how long does your trip lasts??? what are the options? Cheap, reliable and fast!!....

Thanks,

Racer.

Personally, I would never recommend that anyone commute daily between Scranton and NYC to work using the Martz bus. In general, you'd be talking about a nearly 2.5-hour commute each way on the bus route between Scranton and NYC, as I believe this bus makes a stop or two in the Poconos as well to pick up more commuters. In the upcoming years, a new high-speed commuter rail line will link Scranton and the Poconos to NYC, so this may be a more viable option; I don't foresee this becoming a reality though until at least 2010. Sure, it may be attractive to look at the high NYC-area salaries and the low cost-of-living in Scranton and think to yourselves "This is going to be great!!!", but in reality, a 5-hour daily round-trip commute is probably going to grate on your nerves a bit.

[racerlux]

Thanks for the answer. I don't mind the 2 hours for now... What is the MARTZ bus??? sorry, I am new to the city...

Thanks,


Racer

[ScranBarre]

Originally Posted by racerlux

Thanks for the answer. I don't mind the 2 hours for now... What is the MARTZ bus??? sorry, I am new to the city...

Thanks,


Racer

MARTZ Trailways is the main commuter transit company in the area that runs daily service between Scranton and NYC. It's quite popular with the Pocono commuter crowd, but I hear rates can be rather expensive. As of right now, that's the only daily bus service option I know of in the area---JoJo's Traveler's is another local bus company that runs excursions to NYC just twice a week (Wendesday and the weekends) for a fare of $26 round-trip. Being that I only visit NYC every few months, this is the option I choose. I think Martz Trailways may have discounted commuter rates if you're looking to utilize it on a daily basis; check out their website www.martztrailways.com for more information. Here's the schedule from Scranton to NYC and from NYC to Scranton:

DEPART SCRANTON ARRIVE NYC
4:45 AM 7:30 AM
5:15 AM 8:15 AM
5:45 AM 8:30 AM
7:20 AM 10:30 AM
10:30 AM 1:30 PM
1:05 PM 3:50 PM
3:25 PM 6:15 PM
6:30 PM 9:05 PM
6:40 PM 9:30 PM
9:35 PM 12:10 AM


DEPART NYC ARRIVE SCRANTON
8:30 AM 11:00 AM
11:00 AM 1:40 PM
1:05 PM 3:55 PM
2:00 PM 4:45 PM
2:15 PM 5:00 PM
3:00 PM 5:40 PM
3:15 PM 6:00 PM
4:30 PM 7:05 PM
5:05 PM 7:45 PM
5:20 PM 8:10 PM
5:45 PM 8:25 PM
6:30 PM 9:10 PM
7:05 PM 9:55 PM
8:00 PM 10:40 PM
8:30 PM 11:15 PM
9:00 PM 11:45 PM
11:00 PM 1:45 AM
12:30 AM 3:15 AM

Rates will vary, but they are on the steep side---Weekly commuter rates from Scranton to NYC look to be $142! (Which would add up to roughly $7,000 if you're commuting for, per se, 50 weeks of the year!) Then again, it may be worth the cost to avoid the gasoline and the aggravation of battling the gridlock daily on I-80 in North Jersey; the Lincoln Tunnel is pure madness! My recommendation to you would be to do the following: Drive a half-hour down I-380 daily from Scranton to Tobyhanna, as weekly rates from Tobyhanna to NYC are HALF the cost! You'll save $3,500 per year on bus fare by driving an hour per day (Then again, with fuel prices, you may just about break even I suppose!)

[ScranBarre]

Also, you'd pick up the bus, if I'm not mistaken, from the city bus terminal on West Lackawanna Avenue (about two blocks down the street from the Steamtown Mall, and almost right next-door to Penn Furniture). I don't know if you live in Scranton or if you're closer to Wilkes-Barre, but the bus terminal in Wilkes-Barre is near the intersection of North Main & Public Square.

[racerlux]

Thank you so much!!!.. this is very helpful, thanks for taking your time to do the research....


Thank you,

Racer

[ScranBarre]

Originally Posted by racerlux

Thank you so much!!!.. this is very helpful, thanks for taking your time to do the research....


Thank you,

Racer

You're quite welcome. I'm just sorry that there truly aren't more mass transit options available for you as of yet. Basically, the whole idea of people commuting from Lackawanna County to work in New Jersey and New York is a brand new concept, and nobody really planned ahead for the need for transit to these areas. (Then again, none of our elected officials can seem to adequately plan ahead for anything)

The high-speed rail line between Scranton and Hoboken, NJ (with connections to Manhattan) WILL be a reality in the upcoming years though, as the number of people living in Monroe County (Stroudsburg area) and driving daily along I-80 into North Jersey and NYC has grown exponentially over the past decade and has congested I-80 so badly at rush-hour that officials now realize that this rail line is the only short-term option! Trust me, I've been through I-80 in Stroudsburg WESTBOUND into PA during the evening rush; it ain't a pretty sight by any means!

Some locals are worried that the new rail line will promote drug trafficking, but I feel as if those fears are largely unfounded; drugs are being funnelled NOW between NYC and Scranton, and they'll continue to be imported here with or without a train! As a 2009 college graduate looking to potentially live in Scranton and commute to work in Morristown, NJ, this train would be a Godsend! Otherwise, I'll be racking up the speeding tickets left and right on I-80 everyday! LOL!

P.S. A word of advice---the NJ cops patrol the first few miles of roadway after you leave PA VERY heavily; they like to hide and catch hurried PA commuters in speed traps. (Unethical perhaps, but it brings in the bacon for them!) LOL! During my last trip to Manhattan, our bus was even pulled over for speeding right at the border in Columbia, NJ!

[racerlux]

Your Funny and Helpful too...

Thanks,

Racer

[mm_mary73]

Originally Posted by ScrantonWilkesBarre

P.S. A word of advice---the NJ cops patrol the first few miles of roadway after you leave PA VERY heavily; they like to hide and catch hurried PA commuters in speed traps. (Unethical perhaps, but it brings in the bacon for them!) LOL! During my last trip to Manhattan, our bus was even pulled over for speeding right at the border in Columbia, NJ!

Now, now If you were doing the speed limit, you wouldn't get pulled over The worst is going from NC (70mph) to VA (55mph) to WVA/MD (70mph) to PA (55) on I77 / 81 - I'm sure that's changed by now (I fly nowadays). I'd have been rolling if I'd been on the bus that the trooper stopped - too funny!!!

[HomeInWestPittston]

I make the commute from time to time... I drive it... and it is not easy.

If I leave my office in Hoboken on a Friday evening at 5 pm, it can take me 3 1/2 hours to get to Scranton... and that's me not having to deal with the Bridge and Tunnell Traffic out of Manhattan.

Since I left the area in 1979, I have been hearing prophecies about a train... that's 27 years now. As far as I can see on a New Jersey Transit map, as close as the rails come to Scranton is Port Jervis. Perhaps there are freight lines that are capable, but, who would own them?

Unless a Zillion Dollar project launched a joint effort between NJT, PennDOT, and AmTrack taking over 1000s of backyards (yeah for Immanent Domain) it's going to be longer than a few years.

Funny, I was looking at property in the Poconos and the Realtor actually showed me the site where the train station is going to be built.

Believe me, I'd be the happiest woman in NEPA/NYC if they made that happen.

Linda