Fort Lee

Understand

Fort Lee sits between the Paramus, NJ retail corridor and Upper Manhattan.

Fort Lee is a city of 40,000 (2020 Census) that is piled high with apartment buildings. Because Fort Lee sits above the banks of the Hudson River, there are breathtaking views from almost any window facing the river. The New York City skyline and 4th of July fireworks are spectacular over the river. Although it is highly built up, Fort Lee has many playing fields and recreational parks as well as bike and running trails. And although there is a great deal of vehicle traffic to and from the George Washington Bridge, which connects Fort Lee with Manhattan, one of the largest perks of this town is the walking access to many restaurants, convenience stores and mass transit, in the form of buses and vans that frequently run across the bridge and up and down major streets.

This article also covers the neighboring community of Palisades Park.

Get in

Fort Lee is bordered by seven municipalities in New Jersey. To the north, there’s Englewood, Englewood Cliffs. To the south, there’s Cliffside Park, Edgewater. To the west, there’s Ridgefield, Leonia, Palisades Park. The Hudson River forms its eastern boundary, as well as the state line with New York. Across the Hudson River, it also borders the upper Manhattan neighborhood of Washington Heights in New York, NY.

By car

Being the home to the George Washington Bridge, it’s understandable Fort Lee would be easy to traverse in a car, whether passing by or doing local travel. In transit to the city, most of the highways cut through the northern neighborhoods and residential areas, such as: Interstate 95 and the New Jersey Turnpike, US Highway 1-9, US Highway 46, and NJ State Route 4. The Palisades Interstate Parkway also runs north-south of the city, heading north along the Palisades after entering New Jersey, while US Highway 9W runs parallel to the PIP going north of Fort Lee. Together, I-95/New Jersey Turnpike, US Highway 1-9, US Highway 46, US Highway 9W, and NJ State Route 67 (running above those aforementioned highways on a north-south route) form the George Washington Bridge Plaza, where all of those highways converge from the GWB toll plaza, to the bridge crossing over to New York. If coming from New York City, take the George Washington Bridge; Fort Lee is the first town on the New Jersey side of the bridge, and the first of several exits for those highways.

By bus or jitney

Fort Lee’s primary bus stop is at the foot of the George Washington Bridge Bus Plaza (GWBP), where there’s bus service offered by New Jersey Transit, Rockland Coaches, or Spanish Transportation (“dollar buses/vans” usually with a green color). Eastbound, all routes go to either the George Washington Bus Station in the Washington Heights section of Manhattan, or to the Port Authority Bus Terminal in Midtown Manhattan. Westbound, the destinations would usually differ between the different transit carriers. New Jersey Tranist buses transport their customers between local stops in Fort Lee, and out of town in Bergen/Passaic/Hudson Counties. Rockland Coaches offers service between Fort Lee and Rockland County, New York. Spanish Transportation offers bus routes either on their Route 4 service, terminating at Paterson’s Broadway Bus Terminal, or their Bergenline service, traveling down Bergeline Avenue to Jersey City’s Newport Mall. Some of New Jersey Transit’s buses run for 24 hours.

Ask any bus or jitney driver leaving from the Port Authority George Washington Bus Station on 177 St. whether s/he can let you off in Fort Lee.

By ferry

Although there isn’t a ferry in the city, Fort Lee can also be accessed by boat or ferry from New York City via Edgewater (Edgewater Ferry Landing) and Weehawken (Port Imperial Ferry) docks, on the NY Waterway service.

By plane

The nearest airports to Fort Lee are Newark Airport, LaGuardia Airport, Teterboro (TEB) (general aviation only), JFK and Westchester County Airport.

On foot

With the George Washington Bridge not only doubling as an iconic landmark for the city, but as a crucial connection to New York City’s northern neighborhoods (and beyond), it allows for pedestrian and bike travel, with two different walkways (north, or south). From 6AM-midnight, the paths are open for travelers to walk between Fort Lee, and New York City, usually the south walkway is opened unless if maintenance or construction is done. On average, it would take 20-25 minutes to traverse the nearly 1 mile span, and 10 minutes (or less) on bike. The north walkway has a convenient pathway to the Palisades Interstate Park, while the south walkway is in easy reach of Fort Lee Historic Park.

Get around

Most people choose cars, but if headed to a central area, such as Main Street, it is best to drive there, park in a municipal parking lot, and walk around from there. Since so much of the town's retail area is clustered in 3- or 4-block radius, it would be beneficial to walk around, but might also be dangerous given the high traffic intersections. If walking use caution, and if parking, make sure to feed the meter with plenty of pocket change; the meter maids take their job very seriously. Since Fort Lee is situated in such a convenient area for those commuting to and from the city, there is often high traffic and congestion on the roads. If you are planning on being somewhere at a certain time, one might suggest leaving a good 10 to 15 minutes to escape local traffic before hitting any major roadways.

For local transportation or air-port/train station services, there are several local taxi companies that are reliable.