Project description:
The Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) line connects Newark's neighborhoods and workforce to downtown Newark, the employers at the Port of Newark and Port Elizabeth, Newark Liberty International Airport, the Newark Innovation Zone and University Heights Science Park, which is a high-priority area for technology business growth. The Liberty Corridor BRT line will link with NJ TRANSIT's proposed Springfield Avenue BRT line.

Location:
Newark in Essex County and Elizabeth in Union County

Transportation modes:
Bus, Passenger Vehicles

The BRT's role in the Liberty Corridor:

• improves transit between neighborhoods and employment centers, such as Port Elizabeth, Newark Liberty International Airport and the Newark Innovation Zone in University Heights.
• offers an alternative to using passenger vehicles and mitigates traffic congestion.

Related to economic development, the BRT:

• encourages economic development by improving transit access to underutilized properties and employers in University Heights in Newark and in the vicinity of Port Elizabeth and Newark Liberty Airport.
• provides a transit connection to a 72-acre brownfield site in Elizabeth.

Innovative aspects of the BRT are that it:

• funds the first full BRT system in New Jersey. BRT systems in other regions in the United States have successfully attracted new riders, improved regional mobility and spurred economic development.
• encourages smart growth.

Total project cost: $10 million Funding partnerships include the Liberty Corridor, which enables this project by providing $10 million in funding. Project lead: NJ TRANSIT