Jersey City

Understand

Jersey City is the second-largest city in New Jersey, trailing Newark in population, but far surpassing Trenton, the state capital. It is on a peninsula that includes Hoboken to the north and Bayonne to the south, and is bounded by the Hudson River and Manhattan to the east and the Hackensack River to the west. An interesting geographic feature of the city is that within its borders are the only two cases in the country where a U.S. state has exclaves that are both geographically and politically surrounded by another state: the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island, both exclaves of New York in New Jersey. As a result of a 1997 federal court decision, most of Ellis Island is now within Jersey City, with New York retaining a small landlocked portion that encompasses most of the immigration building.

Jersey City shares much of its history, geography, and culture with New York City, much moreso than other parts of New Jersey. Like New York City, it was settled by the Dutch in the 1600s, and this is still evidenced today by the prevalence of Dutch place names in both cities, and the use of the Dutch tricolors in their very similar flags. As in Brooklyn, rows of brownstones and other rowhouses started being built throughout Jersey City with the arrival of the steam ferry in the 1820s and continued throughout the 19th century. Ellis Island was a large source of immigrants from Southern and Eastern Europe and Ireland that shaped the culture of both Jersey City and New York City from the 1880s until the 1920s.

The opening of the Hudson & Manhattan Railroad tunnels into Manhattan in 1908 caused another population boom, with tenements and grand apartment buildings going up in neighborhoods such as Journal Square and along Kennedy Boulevard in the 1910s and 1920s.

Once a humming center of industry, Jersey City housed the booming factories of Colgate and Dixon-Ticonderoga. It was a railroad hub, where the transcontinental rail lines of the country's great railroads (including the famed Pennsylvania Railroad) converged from all across the country. All the railroads to New York City actually ended on the Jersey side of the waterfront, where passengers transferred to ferries to go into Manhattan. Today, Jersey City is neither of these things. Decades of deindustrialization, railroad bankruptcies, government mismanagement and other disappointments had a profound effect on this once booming town. The automobile era and a fear of urban areas caused significant "white flight" to the suburbs in the middle of the 20th century; once affluent areas became centers of poverty and crime. The city lost 87,000 people, almost a third of its population, and apartment buildings and row houses became vacant lots and parking lots. Jersey City was a mirror of what was happening in New York City, although perhaps to a more significant and depressing degree.

During the 1970s, immigrants began moving to Jersey City in droves, attracted by cheap real estate and a chance at experiencing the storied American dream. Today, these immigrants have helped to shape the city into a melting pot of the world's cultures and ethnicities. Nowhere else in the state is there a city as diverse and as interesting as Jersey City in this respect.

Later, the growing popularity of New York City in the 1990s had a significant impact on Jersey City, too. Old railyards along the waterfront became the sites of gleaming new office towers and high-rise condominiums. Brownstones further inland were fixed up by people moving back into the city. Jersey City's renaissance quickly began.

The city has gone through significant transformations over the course of its lifetime. And it's not over yet. High-rises continue to sprout up along the waterfront like weeds, attracting Manhattanites priced out of the real estate market there, while offering quick commutes to jobs in Downtown Manhattan and Midtown. Office towers continue to fill up with new tenants, including the backoffice functions of many New York City-based companies, earning it the moniker "Wall Street West." (In fact, Jersey City has more Class A office space than downtown Pittsburgh or Atlanta.) New stores catering to Jersey City's new gentry continue to pop up almost weekly. It's a city in transition, and it's exciting and frightening at the same time.

Get in

By plane

Jersey City is about a 10-minute ride from Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR), which is a major hub for United Airlines, and is one of the three airports serving the New York metropolitan area. A taxi to Jersey City from EWR will set you back about $40.

If you don't have a lot of bags, consider taking the train from the airport. Catch AirTrain from your terminal to the Newark Airport train station. Take a New York-bound New Jersey Transit train one stop to Newark Penn Station, then cross the platform to catch the PATH to Jersey City. On weekdays, you can take the North Jersey Coast Line to Hoboken where you can transfer to the PATH train. The AirTrain/NJ Transit train is $8.25; PATH is $2.75. The ride takes about 45 minutes.

The two other airports in the region are LaGuardia Airport (LGA) and John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK), both in the borough of Queens in New York City. A cab from LGA or JFK to Jersey City will cost about $100. From JFK airport it is also possible to take either the A or E subway trains from Howard Beach or Jamaica respectively and transfer at World Trade Center to the PATH.

By train

Amtrak serves Newark Penn Station. You will have to transfer to PATH to reach Jersey City.

NJ Transit serves Newark Penn Station and Hoboken. You will have to transfer to PATH to reach Jersey City.

PATH serves four stations in Jersey City: Exchange Place, Grove Street, Journal Square and Newport. Lower Manhattan (World Trade Centre) is about seven minutes away, Midtown Manhattan (33rd Street) is about 15 minutes away and Newark (Newark Penn Station) is about 25 minutes away.

By ferry

NY Waterway operates four ferry routes connecting Jersey City to Manhattan. The routes from Port Liberté and Liberty Harbor connect to Pier 11 in Lower Manhattan. The other two ferry routes leave from Exchange Place, and connect to World Financial Center and West 39th Street in Midtown. Check the NY Waterway website for schedules.

By bus

NJ Transit and other operators run buses to the Journal Square Transportation Center bus terminal. Greyhound buses stop at the Port Authority Bus Terminal in Manhattan and the Newark Penn Station bus terminal in Newark. From the Port Authority Bus Terminal in Manhattan, take NJ Transit bus routes 125 and 119, both of which go directly to Journal Square. From the Newark Penn Station bus terminal in Newark, take NJ Transit bus route 1, which goes directly to Journal Square.

By car

Driving into Jersey City is not recommended. While driving into Jersey City is only difficult at rush hour, finding on-street parking once you are there is a hassle at all times of day. Many streets, particularly in downtown Jersey City and Journal Square, require parking permits to park for longer than a couple of hours. If you park in a permit zone, your car may be booted by the Parking Authority, especially if you have out-of-state plates.

Since Jersey City sits at the western end of the Holland Tunnel, your best bet is to take any highway that leads directly to it. On the New Jersey side, this includes Interstate 78 (look for signs to exits 14-14c), US 1-9, and Interstate 280. On the New York side, take the West Side Highway and Canal Street from Manhattan.

Get around

The best way to navigate Jersey City is on foot and via public transit. Apple Maps and Google Maps can be used to plan a journey, including full navigation and real time updates. Download the official PATH and NJ Transit apps for routes, schedules and updates.

By public transit

Fares

TAPP is the contactless fare payment system for the PATH subway lines. The system allows passengers to pay by "tapping" one of the following to a reader:

• A contactless credit, debit or prepaid card, including American Express, Discover, JCB, Mastercard, UnionPay or Visa.
• A smart device equipped with Apple Pay, Google Pay or Samsung Pay.
• A TAPP card (TAPP cards do not work on the NJ Transit network).

FARE-PAY is the contactless fare payment system for the NJ Transit tram and bus lines. The system allows passengers to pay by "tapping" one of the following to a reader:

• A contactless credit, debit or prepaid card, including American Express, Discover, JCB, Mastercard, UnionPay or Visa.
• A smart device equipped with Apple Pay, Google Pay or Samsung Pay.
• A FARE-PAY card (FARE-PAY cards do not work on the PATH network).

By subway

The PATH network covers four stations in Jersey City: Exchange Place, Grove Street, Journal Square and Newport. Services travel between Jersey City and New York City. Connections to the Hudson-Bergen Light Rail network can be made at the Exchange Place, Hoboken and Newport stations. Connections to the Journal Square Transportation Center and a variety of bus routes can be made at the Journal Square station.

By tram

The Hudson-Bergen Light Rail network runs largely north/south through the city. Services connect downtown Jersey City waterfront with Hoboken in the north and Bayonne in the south.

By bus

The bus network covers all corners of Jersey City. Service frequencies vary by route.

By taxi

Unlike in Manhattan, taxis can be difficult to come by in Jersey City. You often have to call ahead to have one pick you up, although taxis are stationed at the Exchange Place, Grove Street and Journal Square PATH stations. Taxis in Jersey City can run either metered or unmetered (flat rate); the price is generally the same either way. If you are going unmetered, ask the price before getting into the taxi (or ask the dispatcher when you call ahead). Taxis are not cheap; a cab from Grove Street to Journal Square is about $10.

App based ride share services like Lyft and Uber operate in Jersey City. Via has also partnered with the city to operate an on demand ride share system that only runs within Jersey City. The Via fleet of minivans and SUVs holds multiple passengers and offers wheelchair accessible rides. Via is a discount option with rates starting at $2 per ride but wait times at its 'virtual bus stops' are typically 15-20mins.

By bicycle

Citibike provided by Lyft is the exclusive bike share system in Jersey City and has many docks around Downtown Jersey City. The docks are more spaced out the farther you go out of downtown (map). The Citibike system in Jersey City is integrated with neighboring New York City and Hoboken. Accounts, passes, and keys work across all three municipalities. Daily rates range from $3.99 for a single ride to a $15 day pass.

Due to a recent investment by the local government many streets have protected bike lanes. Off road shared use trails can be found along the Hudson River waterfront and in Liberty State Park. The East Coast Greenway, a bike path that runs from Maine to Florida, cuts through Jersey City from Newark, eastward through Lincoln Park and city streets, to the ferries and to the riverfront walkway running north. As of 2022, bike routes across the Hackensack river are limited to the Lincoln Highway Hackensack River Bridge but should be expanded with the completion of the Wittpenn Bridge and the Essex-Hudson Greenway.

Stay safe

Jersey City is very safe for a major city, and its crime rate is comparable to that of New York City. However, it pays to exercise precautions. Outside of Journal Square, Historic Downtown, and the Newark Avenue pedestrian plaza, many streets are virtually deserted after midnight, making those walking alone easy targets. If you must walk alone, stick to well-lit, major streets and don't flash your valuables.

Try to avoid the southern section of the city, bordering Bayonne, particularly the neighborhood of Greenville. In particular, Martin Luther King Drive and Ocean Avenue should be avoided. This is the most crime-ridden portion of the city and it is a primarily low-income area, which is close to Liberty Science Center, Liberty State Park, and other areas that would be of interest to tourists. Making a wrong turn near these destinations can lead visitors traveling by car into unsavory neighborhoods. The light rail stations south of Jersey Avenue are within the southern areas of the city, and exercising caution is heavily suggested after dark.

Do not leave any valuables in your car.

Go next

• Hoboken - Reputedly Hoboken has the most bars per square mile of any city in the United States. And it's only a PATH ride away.
• There are beautiful beaches on the Jersey Shore some ways south of Jersey City via the Garden State Parkway.
• New York City - Some of the world's finest dining, entertainment, shopping, and nightlife are only a ten-minute train ride away. Leave your car at one of the numerous parking lots and garages around Grove Street or Journal Square PATH stations and take in all that America's greatest city has to offer.
• Newark - Despite its reputation for high crime and race riots, Newark is undergoing a renaissance of its own. Be sure to check out a show at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC), one of the best concert halls in the country. After that, hit up the vibrant Ironbound neighborhood for some amazing Brazilian food.